2003–2004
2004
August 2004 Air Navigation Services CZK 1.5 billion Bilateral Loan
This debut financing of Air Navigation Services, provided by Komerční banka, was structured as a two-tranche loan, including a term-loan and a revolving credit facility. The loan’s proceeds were for the development of a new National Integrated Air Traffic Control Centre of the Czech Republic, based in Prague-Jeneč.
June 2004 Grisoft, Inc. Buy-Out Merger
Benson Oak advised on the merger between Benson Oak Capital Acquisitions, Inc. and Grisoft, Inc., one of the top ten anti-virus companies world-wide. Under the terms of the merger, Benson Oak Capital Acquisitions increased its stake in Grisoft to 100%. Benson Oak advised on all elements of the transaction, including drafting of the prospectus to minority shareholders, merger documentation and setting the terms and conditions of the merger according to U.S. law.
February 2004 Acquisition of Majority Stake in Grisoft
Benson Oak advised on the acquisition by a consortium of private investors of a 54% in Grisoft, Inc., one of the top ten anti-virus companies world-wide through its subsidiary in the United States and the dominant provider of anti-virus software in the Czech Republic. Benson Oak organized the acquisition’s financing in a private placement through Benson Oak Capital.
2003
November 2003 Czech Airport Authority (ČSL) CZK 9 billion Syndicated Guarantee
This syndicated bank guarantee facility was provided for the benefit of an EIB loan signed in April 2003. This debut international borrowing for ČSL was extremely successful, as it was oversubscribed by 30% with 14 banks participating.
July 2003 Czech Airport Authority (ČSL) CZK 1.5 billion Bridge Loan
This loan was provided to the Czech Airport Authority (ČSL) as the first milestone in the financing of the construction of a new terminal at the Prague-Ruzyně International Airport (Project EUropa). The loan served as a bridge loan pending completion of a syndicated guarantee in favor of a CZK 9 billion loan from EIB. It was provided by a bank consortium of ABN AMRO, HSBC and Bank Austria Creditanstalt, the lead arrangers of ČSL’s syndicated guarantee.
July 2003 Body Basics Working Capital Facility
Provided by Česká spořitelna, this multi-currency working capital facility provided Body Basics a line of credit from for the company to finance its expansion into Central and Eastern Europe. This transaction represented an important success in Benson Oak’s initiative to assist SMEs in the Czech and Slovak Republics gain access to financing sources.
April 2003 Czech Airport Authority CZK 9 billion EIB Financing
This multi-currency, 25-year financing was raised to finance construction of a new terminal at the Prague-Ruzyně International Airport (Project EUropa), expected to cost up to a total of CZK 10 billion. It was the first EIB financing denominated in Czech koruna and the first to benefit from lower EIB interest rates for Czech borrowers, ahead of EU accession.