Spirit Amber and a group of private equity investors comprising Texas Pacific Group, The Blackstone Group, CVC Capital Partners and Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity have tapped Barclays, Citigroup, Merrill Lynch and Royal Bank of Scotland for a bridge loan backing the GBP2.51 billion ($4.1 billion) buyout of pubs, restaurants and lodges from Scottish & Newcastle.
A banker familiar with the situation said a securitization deal would take out a very significant part of the bridge loan, but he declined to comment on the size of a potential bond deal or when it would occur. The banker said there would be some syndication of the bridge loan. A Spirit spokeswoman declined comment on the financing details. Officials at the banks either declined comment or did not return calls.