RBS International is to support private equity group EQT by participating in its latest flagship buyout fund’s subscription credit facility.
According to RBSI, this represents the first environmental, social and governance (ESG)-linked fund-level facility of this size in the global fund financing market.
Funded by a syndicate of lenders, the facility includes an ESG pricing mechanism and is designed to incentivise the performance of the fund’s portfolio companies in improving their ESG performance.
RBSI is an original lender within the syndicate of banks, all of which have underwritten the subscription facility to EQT’s latest buyout fund. The facility is currently at €2.3bn and has an upper limit of around €5bn.
Jean-Paul Peters (pictured), Head of RBSI's Funds Banking team in Guernsey, commented: “As part of the bank’s commitment to champion climate solutions, this deal represents a landmark moment for our business and the fund financing market as a whole.
"By working with EQT and other banks on this transaction, we have proved that ESG is a fundamental part of our lending strategy and not just reserved to specific asset classes."
The RBSI team, led by Paul Milsted and supported by the loan markets team from NatWest Group, completed the transaction against a challenging deadline in the midst of lockdown measures in force due to Covid-19.