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Greg Eck and Bill Stapel are the new leaders of the ABL Group at Fifth Third Bank, N.A., one of the nation’s largest asset-based lenders, with $8.1 MM in commitments and serving customers in 38 states, Canada and Europe. They step into their roles following the retirement of Fifth Third Business Capital President Mike Sharkey, who was also past president and chairman of Secured Finance Network.

Wintrust Business Credit (WBC), the asset-based lending (ABL) unit of Wintrust Commercial Banking, today announced plans to expand its geographic reach from a regional provider to a national ABL platform.

Since its founding in 2008, WBC has provided best-in-class asset-based lending solutions with a focus on middle-market businesses in the Wintrust footprint. 

Wingspire Capital LLC (“Wingspire”) announced that it has agented a $100 million credit facility consisting of an $80 million senior credit facility (co-led by Ares Commercial Finance) and a $20 million second lien credit facility (provided by Atalaya Capital Management) to Rubies II, LLC (“Rubies II”).

Proceeds from the financing were used to purchase substantially all of the assets of Rubie’s Costume Company, Inc. (“Rubie’s”) via a Chapter 11 363 sale process.  Proceeds will also be used to fund the on-going working capital needs of Rubies II. 

The last 18 months have brought challenges unlike no other. Stewart Hayes, chair of the SFNet 2021 40 Under 40 Awards and managing director, Wells Fargo Capital Finance, sat down with four former SFNet 40 Under 40 Award winners who led their company or group practice during 2020-2021 to dive into how they addressed challenges, what helped prepare them to weather the COVID crisis, and advice on handling the next curveball.

Cross-border loan workouts and enforcement of security interests across multiple jurisdictions is a complex matter and greatly depends on the venue of the insolvency and the location of the collateral. These factors are also intertwined with the overall reach of the credit facility. A deep understanding of the multiplicity of issues that may arise during a workout or insolvency can not only enhance a lender’s ability to be made whole in an enforcement scenario, but can also create opportunity for liquidity providers to expand their geographic offerings and create unique value for their global borrowers.

Conducive factors include high market liquidity, low interest rates, accommodative Fed policy and a vaccination against COVID-19

The year 2021 is shaping up to be a strong and supportive one for leveraged finance, led primarily by merger-and-acquisition (M&A) and refinancing activity, according to the Capital Markets group at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG). 

Key members of the group delivered their outlook for leveraged finance to reporters and editors at a virtual MUFG media roundtable earlier this month that featured Jeffrey Knowles, Co-Head of Debt Capital Markets; Grant Moyer, Head of Leveraged Capital Markets; and Art de Peña, Head of Loan Syndications and Distribution.

Siena Lending Group LLC ("Siena"), a leading independent asset-based lending company, today announced it has increased its senior credit facility with Wells Fargo Capital Finance to $400 million. This upsize will enable Siena to continue its growth following the firm’s historic results in the second quarter of 2021, when it closed more than $220 million in credit facilities for middle-market businesses across the country.

SFNet is your advocate at the state and federal level. See below for current legislative issues SFNet is working on relevant to secured finance. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to the Advocacy Committee Staff Liaison, Michele Ocejo.

The nation’s largest retailer of maternity wear has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection amid sagging sales, increased competition and changing customer tastes.

Destination Maternity listed $260 million in assets and $240 million in debts in its filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. The company, which in August announced it was reviewing strategic alternatives, including a possible sale, said the process has “already yielded indications of interest from several credible bidders.” 

Doug Motl joins UMB Capital Finance as Senior Vice President, Director of Originations to manage its rapidly expanding business development department initiatives. Doug will be responsible for leading the Asset Based Lending’s originations team as UMB continues to broaden its marketing efforts nationally across the Company’s platform.

Crestmark secured a total of $12,000,000 in ABL financial solutions for nine new clients; Crestmark Equipment Finance provided $12,156,249 in 12 new lease transactions; Crestmark Vendor Finance provided $7,472,296 in 87 new lease transactions; the Joint Ventures Division provided $994,451 in financing for one client; and the Government Guaranteed Lending Division provided $9,747,000 in financing for seven new clients in the second half of January.