James Beeson

JAMES BEESON advises lenders and borrowers on a range of real estate finance transactions, with a particular focus on cross-border acquisition financings and development financings.

James regularly structures, negotiates, and executes large-scale real estate transactions involving complex financing arrangements. He represents a variety of financial institutions and corporations based both in Europe and internationally, drawing on his experience spanning varied asset classes and industries. His work includes financings for major commercial, retail, and logistics properties located in the UK and Continental Europe.

James serves as a go-to advisor to many lenders and sponsors in connection with their most significant real estate transactions, including financings of multijurisdictional portfolios. He also brings particular experience handling loan-on-loan financings.

Recent examples of James’s work include advising:

• A U.S. investment bank in relation to €350 million senior/mezzanine loans to a JV of a U.S. private equity fund and European operating partner in relation to the development of a marquee data center project in Portugal.
• A U.S. investment bank in relation to a loan-on-loan program origination with seed properties in Belgium, Sweden, Spain, and England.
• A U.S. investment bank in relation to a loan-on-loan program origination with a seed property in Italy.
• The joint venture of U.S. and European real estate private equity funds on the £500 million financing of the acquisition of a European hospitality business.
• A European bank in relation to a loan-on-loan to PIMCO secured on German property.
• Barclays Bank in relation to a loan-on-loan financing secured on developments in Bonn and Berlin.
• Brookfield on a mortgage loan in connection with the £714 million acquisition of Arlington Business Parks.
• TDR Capital on a £900 million mortgage bridge financing and subsequent sale and leaseback in relation to acquiring Asda Stores.
• Asda on a £2.27 billion sale and leaseback structured through a loan and securitization.
• Onex Corporation on a mortgage bridge and three subsequent ground rent transactions in respect of the £1.35 billion acquisition of Parkdean Resorts.
• A European lender on an ongoing €335 million loan-on-loan program secured on a rolling real-estate asset base for Castlelake.
• A U.S. private equity real estate debt fund on:
  • a €1 billion bridge-to-term refinancing of a Swedish sponsor.
  • a £65 million development loan to Oxenwood secured on UK logistics assets.
  • a £146 million development loan to Oaktree secured on a prime office development in Canary Wharf.
  • a £136 million development loan to Ares secured on residential property.
  • a £94 million development loan to Northwood secured on logistics assets.
  • Ares on a €113 million loan secured on an office property in Belgium.
• A European lender on ongoing multiple loan-on-loan programs (€800 million in aggregate) secured on retail, office, hospitality, and residential properties in Ireland and the UK.
• A lender on a loan-on-loan warehouse facility secured on a rolling base of development loans secured on small-scale developments in the UK and Ireland.
• A lender on a €140 million NPL financing for Lonestar secured on Spanish NPLs.
• Bay Grove on financing its acquisitions of cold storage facilities and businesses in Europe and subsequent Cold Finance securitization.

The above matters were handled prior to joining Sidley.