Business Property Lending Sold for $2.51 Billion

EverBank Financial announced that it had executed an agreement to purchase Business Property Lending, a unit of GE Capital Real Estate, for $2.51 billion in cash. No debt will be assumed in the acquisition, and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year pending regulatory approval. Business Property Lending, which originates and services commercial real estate loans, currently has 14 offices across the United States with roughly $2.44 billion of performing commercial loans and servicing rights on $3.1 billion of loans securitized by GE Capital.

BofA Merrill Lynch acted as the financial advisor to EverBank and Sullivan & Cromwell LLP acted as its legal advisor on the transaction. Goldman Sachs also acted as an advisor to EverBank and Gateway Asset Management LLC provided loan diligence. Deutsche Bank Securities acted as financial advisor to GE Capital and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP acted as its legal advisor.

"Today's announcement represents a compelling strategic expansion into business property lending in key metropolitan areas where EverBank currently has significant lending, leasing and deposit customers," commented Robert Clements, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of EverBank. "We believe this fully integrated, high quality franchise will accelerate EverBank's strategic growth plans and will further enhance and diversify our robust, nationwide asset generation capabilities."

The sale will reduce GE Capital's ending net investment, a measure of the unit's size that excludes non-interest-bearing liabilities and cash, by $5 billion, a GE spokesman, Russell Wilkerson, said. "The transaction is consistent with our strategy of reducing our real estate portfolio," Wilkerson said in the e- mail reported by The San Francisco Chronicle. According to a New York Times blog, EverBank previously acquired the banking operations of the failed Bank of Florida in a deal brokered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in 2010.

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.

Strategic Buys Four Seasons Properties for $95M

Strategic Hotels & Resorts, Inc. announced the acquisition of two Four Seasons hotels in exchange for 15.2 million shares of common stock at $6.25 per share valued at $95 million to close the deal according to a CoStar report. Strategic purchased the Four Seasons Jackson Hole and Four Seasons Silicon Valley from The Woodbridge Company Limited. Strategic was advised by Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and Avington Financial Limited on the transaction.

In addition, Chicago-based Strategic separately will sell another eight million shares of its stock to Woodbridge for $50 million as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Because the two Four Seasons carry no debt of their own, adding them will lower Strategic's overall debt ratio. The company expects the Woodbridge deal to to close by March. It "is an amazing endorsement for the company," Strategic Chief Executive Officer Laurence Geller said. "And we get more stability in the stock" with 21% of it being held by two big investors.

Commenting on the transaction, W. Geoffrey Beattie, President of Woodbridge, said, "Strategic Hotels is the ideal acquirer for both of these properties given their deep knowledge of these assets, their proven investment expertise and longstanding relationship with the Four Seasons brand. We see an excellent growth opportunity in Strategic Hotels' long-term vision and near-term strategic plan."

For more news and information visit Blumberg Capital Partners.