Articles

The increase in loan and lease defaults in the wake of COVID-19 has brought to the forefront numerous legal defenses by borrowers and tenants, such as force majeure, impossibility, and frustration of purpose.  Force majeure allows a party to suspend or terminate their obligations when certain circumstances beyond their control arise.  Impossibility applies when the destruction of the subject matter of the contract or the means of performance makes contract compliance objectively impossible.  Frustration of purpose applies when a change in circumstances makes one party’s performance virtually worthless to the other.  The decision whether to permit these defenses boils down to allocation of risk, specifically (i) who should bear the risk of unforeseen circumstances, such as the pandemic; and (ii) does the governing contract address the allocation of risk?

The European Union’s recent passage of its Sustainability Financial Disclosure Regulation marks yet another milestone in the progression of environmental, social and governance matters. This article will review this regulation and related ESG disclosure requirements, together with other notable ESG developments, and discuss their impact on middle-market lenders.

36th Street Capital Partners LLC (“36th Street Capital”), an independent provider of alternative funding solutions for the equipment financing industry, announced the appointment of Wayne Tentler as Executive Vice President of Sales.

The addition of Mr. Tentler provides 36th Street Capital an opportunity to develop new client relationships while expanding the company’s position in the marketplace. Based in the Sarasota, FL, Wayne brings over 15 years of experience in corporate finance, including most recently serving as Commercial Leader for one of GE Capital’s Industrial Financing units.

MIDCAP FINANCIAL today announced that it has successfully closed the acquisition of substantially all of PNC Bank's Franchise Finance loan portfolio. In conjunction with the acquisition, six members of the Franchise Finance business have joined MidCap Financial including Bernard Lajeunesse, former Senior Vice President and General Manager of PNC Franchise Finance, who will be leading the new initiative.

At a meeting of its Executive Committee in June, SFNet put forward a plan to establish two new standing committees. The first would seek to understand and address issues of diversity, equality and inclusion as they affect the SFNet Community. The second would focus on the proliferation of international secured finance. The formation of the new committees, which would hold seats on SFNet’s Executive Committee, will be presented for approval to SFNet Member Directors along with the overall recommended slate of 2021 Fiscal Year Executive and Management Committee candidates later this month.

Commercial loan growth reaccelerated across much of the U.S. banking industry as lenders began to fund federally backed small business loans and prepared to start processing a second round of applications under the coronavirus relief program.

Excluding the 25 largest institutions by assets, commercial and industrial loans increased 6.3% during the week ended April 15, according to seasonally adjusted data in the Federal Reserve's most recent H.8 report on commercial banks. That represents a huge jump from growth rates of 0.6% to 0.8% in the preceding two weeks, and leapfrogs growth of 2.1% to 2.3% during two weeks in March when corporate draws against bank credit lines were particularly heavy.

Encina Business Credit, LLC announced today that it has provided a $75 million senior secured revolving credit facility to a leading global provider of risk management and operational support services to government and commercial clients.

The senior secured revolving line of credit, which is collateralized by accounts receivable, was used to refinance existing debt and provide ongoing working capital financing.

Nneoma Maduike, member of SFNet’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusiveness Committee interviews Anthony C. Hood, PhD, executive vice president and chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer of First Horizon National Corp. Dr. Hood is responsible for cultivating and expanding First Horizon’s strategic leadership in developing and implementing programs and initiatives that advance the Company’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) efforts.

Richard Hawkins, CEO of Atlantic RMS, considers the implications of the UK government's latest announcement and its impact on asset-based lending to UK business.

Screen shots of the various First Place Teams from the Go Game festivities held on October 27. Attendees had a great time competing in trivia and lip syncing competitions.

Axiom Bank, N.A., a Maitland-based, leading community bank, recently appointed Dan Karas as EVP of Allied Affiliated Funding, the Bank’s factoring and asset-based lending division.  In this role, Karas will be responsible for guiding the division and driving its initiatives toward continuing growth.

Karas’ commercial lending expertise spans nearly four decades with national and regional banks. In his most recent role at a Dallas-based community bank, Karas helped create its commercial finance businesses and expand its commercial lending platforms and grew profitability.