HFW advises Sucafina On refinancing Of pioneering US$700m sustainability-linked facility

Global, sector-focused law firm HFW has advised Geneva-based coffee company Sucafina SA on the successful refinancing of its pioneering US$700 million sustainability-linked senior secured borrowing base facility led by ING Bank N.V. and a syndicate of global banks.

The facility includes a series of sustainability-related Key Performance Indicators, including increasing the number of certified farmers and reducing the carbon footprint and deforestation in coffee-producing countries.

Two additional sustainability-related KPIs have been added as part of the refinancing, relating to new regenerative agricultural methodology used by farmers, and the development of an innovative agroforestry program linked to the sale of carbon credits as an additional income stream for farmers. The facility is the first of its kind within the industry to formally include these KPIs.

HFW’s team advising Sucafina was led by Geneva-based Global Head of Finance Olivier Bazin with Gibran Alaoui, Tiffany Monteiro Ferreira, and Joanne Savory. HFW advised Sucafina on the original financing in 2021 and its debut USD300m facility in 2017.

Olivier Bazin, HFW:  “We were delighted to partner with Sucafina on its flagship syndicated facility, which will support its global supply chain from shipment of green coffee at origin through to delivery to the roasters. The HFW team was able to support its long-standing client on this complex global financing involving multiple group entities and security in Vietnam, USA, Canada, Belgium, Netherlands, England and Switzerland. In addition to innovation in digitisation and traceability, the sustainability KPIs are an important part of the instrument within the new framework for SLLs in the loan market. ”

To find out more about the refinancing, read Sucafina’s announcement here.