Global law firm Proskauer represented Italy’s utility company Enel in connection with its offering of hybrid Capital Securities due 2075 in reliance on Regulation S for an aggregate principal amount of €1.6 billion. The offering consisted of a €1 billion tranche, initially bearing interest at the rate of five percent, and a £500 million tranche, initially bearing interest at 6.625 percent.
Enel is Italy’s largest utility company and Europe’s second largest utility company, with a significant presence in Europe and the Americas. The offered securities are subordinated bonds that, in light of certain unique features, are treated by each of Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Fitch as 50 percent debt and 50 percent equity.
The Proskauer team, which was based in London and New York, was led by U.S. Capital Markets partner Roberto Bruno, and included partner Hazel Miller (UK Finance), senior tax consultant Dominic Adams (UK Tax) and associate Shauna Bracher (Capital Markets).
Previously, this team represented Enel in its debut €1.7 billion and subsequent $1.25 billion 144A and RegS offerings of hybrid capital securities in September 2013. As with the earlier offerings, this month’s offering was largely over-subscribed and involved a syndicate of 23 leading international and Italian investment banks, including JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Barclays, HSBC, UniCredit, Banca IMI and Mediobanca.
