LONDON, 23rd November, 2011: GE Capital, one of Europe's leading providers of asset based lending (ABL), today announced that it has provided Accolade Wines, the largest wine company by volume in Australia and the UK, with a £150 million cross border financing facility. The facilities were provided by GE Capital UK and GE Capital Australia.
The deal will support CHAMP Private Equity, an 80% owner of Accolade wines and one of Australia's leading private equity fund managers, in its plans to fund growth of the business. Accolade, which owns brands including the Australia's Hardys and Banrock Station, South Africa's Kumala and Fish Hoek and the USA's Echo Falls, distributes to large retailers such as Tesco and Sainsbury's in the UK and also owns 50% of Matthew Clark, one of the UK's largest wholesalers of alcoholic beverages.
CHAMP purchased 80% of Accolade, formerly Constellation Wines, in January 2011. The transaction saw Accolade acquire the Australian and European business, including its South African brands, wineries, facilities and vineyards. The financing will allow Accolade to increase its working capital and capital expenditure as it grows internationally, whilst using GE Capital as its sole ABL partner across the two jurisdictions.
CHAMP, which has offices in Sydney and Brisbane, Australia and affiliated offices in Singapore and New York, has invested across a broad range of sectors, including media, transport, industrial services, education, retail, agribusiness, health and financial services since 1987. The relationship with GE Capital stretches back over 5 years and has included the provision of senior debt facilities to United Malt Holdings and ATF Services.
Adam Johnson, Managing Director at GE Capital, said: "This deal represents a further milestone in GE Capital's bespoke cross border transaction activities. Our strong presence in both the UK and Australia enabled us to work closely with CHAMP to provide the 'one-stop-shop' support that was needed, without involving multiple financiers.
"We are committed to continuing to expand our unique international offering in this area, helping businesses with the financing solutions they need to grow into export markets."
GE Capital has completed a number of cross border financings in the past twelve months including a €125 million receivables financing facility to global automotive components and systems supplier International Automotive Components Group Europe Limited (IACG Europe).
Zoe Chambers
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