Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance advises Goldman Sachs on the refinancing of the largest privately owned rental residential portfolio in the Czech Republic

Clifford Chance's Prague office has successfully advised Goldman Sachs International in its role as the lead bookrunner on the refinancing, by way of a senior secured bond issuance, of the residential portfolio of RESIDOMO, s.r.o., a real estate investment company that manages residential accommodation in the city of Ostrava and neighbouring cities in the Moravian-Silesian region of the Czech Republic.

The refinancing sees RESIDOMO issue EUR 680 million senior secured notes due in 2024 as it restructures the debt acquired as part of the property portfolio's acquisition in 2015. The bond issue looks to further optimise the capital structure of RESIDOMO by reducing its interest costs and extending its debt maturity, enabling the property company to save EUR 140 million by the bond's maturity in 2024.

RESIDOMO is the leading provider of affordable housing in the Moravian-Silesian region, with a property portfolio that comprises 43,100 apartments and 1,800 commercial spaces distributed over a total area of 2.6 million square metres, making it the largest privately owned residential portfolio in the Czech Republic. The total appraised value of the apartments was CZK 28.4 billion (€1.1 billion) as of June 2017.

Clifford Chance's team was led by partners Miloš Felgr, head of the finance practice in Prague, and Emil Holub, head of the real estate practice. The partners were primarily assisted by senior associates Marian Husár, Vladimír Rýlich and Milan Rákosník.

Goldman Sachs was the lead bookrunner on the offering, with HSBC and Unicredit Bank acting as joint bookrunners.