West LB

WestLB AG (WestLB) is an internationally active wholesale and commercial bank with total assets in excess of Euro 350 billion.

The Bank has been active in the UK markets for more than twenty years, providing financing solutions for a wide range of UK companies and institutions, and has a significant presence in the City of London.

West LB has particular expertise in syndicated lending and corporate finance, debt and equity capital markets, project and structured finance, asset-backed transactions and principal finance, trade finance and asset management WestLB ranked as one of the worlds second largest Project Finance bank in 2001 [source: Project Finance Magazine], arranging some Euro 4.9 billion of financing and winning a variety of industry awards including the Best Bank award from Treasury Management International Magazine.

Wembley West LBs Project Financing capabilities and the Banks capacity for executing complex deals suited the Bank ideally to the arrangers role for the Wembley financing package.

Having secured the mandate to arrange the financing earlier this year, the Bank moved swiftly to conduct due diligence on and document the wide variety of commercial contracts underpinning the new stadium, and to assemble City support for the long-awaited project, eventually securing financial close on the 426 million bank package just six months after beginning work on the transaction.

"We are delighted to have been able to play a part in financing this historic project," said Mr Juergen Sengera, Chairman of the Managing Board of WestLB AG.

"It has been a complex transaction from an arrangers perspective but we are confident that work on the new stadium can go ahead underpinned by solid commercial and financial foundations."

www.westlb.co.uk