• Castelnau Group is a listed closed-ended investment company specialising in equity investments in thriving UK small to mid-cap private companies.
• The business was looking to refinance their existing line, and enhance their funding structure for future investment opportunities.
• Shawbrook worked closely with Castelnau and their experienced advisor to deliver a landmark Fund Finance deal – both in terms of the overall loan of £65m and the day-one drawdown which equated to over 90% of the facility.

Listed closed-ended investment company, Castelnau Group (“Castelnau”) has secured a £65m revolving loan facility from Shawbrook to refinance an existing loan, cover associated costs and make a significant cost savings that supports future investment. The solution is a landmark deal, both in terms of the loan amount and the day-one drawdown which totalled over 90% of the facility.

Castelnau is an investment company focused on delivering strong returns for its shareholders by investing in select UK small to mid-cap private companies. Managed by Phoenix Asset Management Partners, the company adopts a long-term investment approach, aiming to foster value creation by removing short-term pressures and encouraging rational capital allocation within its portfolio companies.

Seeking to refinance existing debt and ease concentration risk within the business, Castelnau was introduced to Shawbrook by Ben Handler from Liberum who knew of the bank's Fund Finance offering and the team's expertise in structuring complex transactions.

Shawbrook's Speciality and Fund Finance team delivered a record £65m 3-year revolving credit facility which had the largest initial draw for a new client to date. The innovative solution, secured against the portfolio's net asset value, has enabled Castelnau to reduce costs and optimise their capital structure for future opportunities.

Richard Brown, CEO of Castelnau Group, commented:

'We are extremely pleased to have secured this facility from Shawbrook, which doesn't just reduce our ongoing costs, but helps to normalise our capital structure. Throughout the process, Ismail and the team at Shawbrook distinguished themselves by being pragmatic, commercial, and highly responsive-a partnership approach that sets them apart from traditional banking peers and delivered a great outcome for all parties involved. We look forward to broadening our commercial relationship with Shawbrook going forward.”

Ismail Farhat, Director, Speciality and Fund Finance at Shawbrook said,

“Castelnau's strong business model and track record gave us the confidence to structure a flexible facility for this dynamic investment company. We look forward to partnering with Castelnau's management team as they strengthen operations and pursue further growth.”

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