White & Case advises Fielmann Group on bridge financing and inaugural €275 million Schuldschein issuance

Global law firm White & Case LLP advised Fielmann Gruppe AG (Fielmann Group) on their inaugural €275 million Schuldschein issuance.

The Schuldschein is divided into three tranches with maturities of three, five, and seven years respectively, and includes fixed and variable interest rates. BNP Paribas, DZ BANK, and Morgan Stanley acted as arrangers.

The Schuldschein transaction secures long-term financing for the Fielmann Group, reduces its overall capital costs, and provides financial flexibility to execute its growth strategy. The company will use the proceeds to refinance the bridge facility they received in connection with the acquisition of Shopko Optical – the Group’s largest acquisition to date. The White & Case team also advised the Fielmann Group on the bridge facility at the time the acquisition was made.

Founded in 1972, the Fielmann Group is a listed German family-owned company operating in the optometry and audiology industry and employs around 24,000 people worldwide.

The White & Case team in Frankfurt which advised on the transactions was led by partners Vanessa Schürmann (bridge financing), Karsten Wöckener and local partner Peter Becker (Schuldschein issuance), and included partners Rebecca Emory and Sebastian Schrag, counsel David Santoro and associates Darleen Stöckl and Marie-Christin Frowerk.

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