On March 7, 2024, the High Court of England & Wales sanctioned the restructuring plan of Project Lietzenburger Straße HoldCo S.à r.l. under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006. A subsidiary of Project Lietzenburger Straße HoldCo S.à r.l. is the owner of Project Fürst, one of the largest uncompleted commercial real estate projects in Germany located in the heart of Berlin’s Ku’damm boulevard. The restructuring plan achieved the restructuring of the more than €1 billion of secured debt of Project Fürst and the provision of €190 million of incremental liquidity.
S&C acted for Nofe Investment S.à r.l., which is part of Fidera. Nofe is the largest creditor of Project Fürst, holding approximately €353 million of the senior notes. Fidera’s creativity, incisive investing experience and extraordinary deal execution skills were pivotal in enabling Project Fürst to deliver a viable restructuring that achieved a comprehensive endorsement from the Court. S&C is very proud to have represented Fidera in both the in-court restructuring in the UK and in the consensual restructuring discussions that preceded it.
The approval of the plan followed a four-day hearing in February, featuring testimony by six expert witnesses and three fact witnesses on the valuation, plan viability and other relevant restructuring alternatives. The completion of the restructuring process will enable the resumption of construction work on the development of Project Fürst for the benefit of multiple stakeholders, including the city of Berlin.
The cross-border S&C team representing and advising Nofe was led by Max Birke and Chris Howard, and included Matthew Squire, Dermot Costello, and Maya Nuyts in London and Miriam Peter and Lucas Petry in Frankfurt. Hattie Middleditch advised on litigation matters. Presley Warner, Simone Benton, Wolfram von Frankenberg and Eleanor Chafer had key roles at various stages of the matter. Andrew Thomson advised on tax matters.