Travers Smith LLP has advised Paragon Bank plc (Paragon) and Silicon Valley Bank UK Branch (SVB) on the refinancing of a senior debt facility provided to Liberis, a leader in embedded finance solutions. The transaction included bringing SVB into a senior lender group that also includes British Business Investments and marks the first time that our Finance Group has advised long-term client SVB in the speciality finance space.
Travers Smith advised on the original facility in 2018, which supports Liberis in providing funding to small businesses based on their future credit and debit card sales. The funding is repaid from a pre-agreed percentage of the business’ customer card takings. Since May 2020, Liberis has been accredited as part of the UK’s Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In summer 2020, Travers Smith advised the senior lender group on amendments to the facility to support the origination of loans under CBILS to small businesses.
The Travers Smith team was led by Finance Senior Counsel Jamie Parish and Partner Charles Bischoff with support from Senior Associate Laura Smith, Associate Alastair Lowson, and Trainee Katy Lavall-Smith.
Jamie Pickering, Director – Structured Lending at Paragon Bank, said "We are proud to have been able to continue to partner with Liberis on this significant refinancing and appreciate Travers Smith's support throughout this complex transaction. The ability to rapidly access funds is key for SME survival in uncertain times and effective delivery of embedded finance is a much-needed piece of the puzzle."
Folake Shasanya, Head of EMEA Warehouse Financing, Silicon Valley Bank, commented "We are pleased to become a new funding partner to Liberis and to work with the highly-regarded Speciality Finance team at Travers Smith for the first time. At SVB, supporting innovation is in our DNA and we are delighted to provide this global growth opportunity to Liberis through our Warehouse and Venture Debt offerings."
Charles Bischoff, Finance Partner added "Having advised Paragon for several years on the financing it provides to Liberis, we are delighted to see this facility grow and to offer our support to SVB as an incoming lender. We hope that these new funds will be a valuable resource that drives further expansion for Liberis and ultimately supports SMEs' survival through the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and beyond."
Liberis was advised by Osborne Clarke LLP.
