EVENTS
John O’Donovan @ Finance Professional Show John O’Donovan, Harold Benjamin’s Head of Banking and Finance was the legal lead on a panel discussing commercial lending at the Finance Professional Show. The event was an opportunity for funders and service providers catering to borrower needs, to provide insight and information to the wider industry covering property, development, equity and debt funding and much more. John is a Banking & Finance Partner with over 15 years of experience across the financial services sector, advising on all aspects of banking and finance for a wide spectrum of lender and borrower clients. These include leading providers of senior and mezzanine debt, bridging lenders, property developers, portfolio landlords and high net worth individuals. He brought his significant experience and expertise in high value property finance, restructuring and development finance transactions to the high-profile event at London Olympia, providing funding and service provision insights to financial professionals working in the property, development, equity and debt funding and many other sectors. The panel discussion covered commercial lending and some of the recurring issues for investors and private purchasers alike such as how lenders viewed commercial and residential
splits. In this regard, it was apparent that lenders would be keen on understanding experience, affordability, the quality of the borrower, management expertise, industry knowledge and proof of performance. John O'Donovan made the following key interventions from a legal point of view: lenders are interested in the strength of the tenant and the realistic ability to stick to financial covenants. Further, that in the case of foreign nationals and off-shore structures, the overall footprint in the UK is worth considering, and so from a money laundering and compliance perspective, it is crucial that there is transparency as to who the ultimate beneficial owner is in any given transaction.
Click to connect with John on LinkedIn
john.odonovan@haroldbenjamin.com
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