On 5 April 2019, the European Commission (“EC”) published a report – prepared by Europe Economics at the request of DG COMP – on EU loan syndication and its impact on competition in credit markets (the “Report”).

The Report describes the functioning of the syndicated loan business and seeks to assess whether there are potential competition concerns with regard to syndicated loans in leveraged buy-outs (“LBOs”), project finance (“PF”) and infrastructure projects (“INFRA”). Syndicated loans are considered to be an important source of finance to the European economy. The EC’s interest in this business is therefore primarily motivated by an assessment of its effectiveness and functioning besides potential competition concerns. Geographically, the Report focuses on France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and the UK. These countries account for approx. 75% of syndicated lending volume in the identified segments in the EU, with Poland making up the smallest share of the group.

Competitive Risks

The Report highlights some competition risk areas in syndicated lending markets but also outlines certain “critical safeguards” that should be maintained to offset this risk. It identifies the following areas where some competition risk could be identified:

Pre-bid market soundings: The Report cautions that market soundings by Mandated Lead Arrangers (“MLA”), which screen the interest of other banks to participate in syndication, may facilitate collusion. It highlights that market soundings may lead to exchanges of sensitive pricing information and thereby increase the risk of collusion. This risk is amplified where banks do not separate their syndication and origination desks.

Post-mandate to loan agreement: Post-mandate, the risk of exchanges of commercially sensitive information decreases where loan terms are typically negotiated bilaterally between individual lenders and borrowers. However, the Report indicates that, where lenders repeatedly interact over a longer time period, the resulting transparency may increase the risk of collusion.

Ancillary services: Ancillary services are typically decided and allocated as part of the initial loan agreement. However, the Report identifies some cases where MLA tie the provision of a loan to the subsequent provision of ancillary services, thereby restricting the provision of ancillary services to the syndicate. The Report takes the view that this could result in sub-optimal outcomes for the borrower with the risk being slightly elevated in the PF and INFRA segments and in smaller regions, such as Poland, which offer less choice.

Debt advisors involved in the syndicated loan: The Report identifies certain instances where lending and advisory roles are bundled and indicates that this may result in sub-optimal outcomes, since the advisor is not appointed following a competitive process. The Report also finds a further risk that the lender in its advisory capacity could influence the borrower to act in a manner that primarily benefits the lender rather than the borrower.

Coordination on the secondary market: The Report states that may be a competitive risk where the syndicated banks coordinate on the timing and terms of debt sales in the secondary market. The Report finds that such forms of coordination would amount to by object infringements. However, it also acknowledges that the characteristics of the secondary market, such as the high degree of buyer sophistication, render collusion less likely.

Refinancing: The Report identifies a risk that discussions amongst syndicate members regarding restructuring following a default may facilitate collusion. Usually restructuring and loan origination desks function separately and an outside lender participates in refinancing discussions, thus mitigating the scope for collusion. However, the Report finds that, absent either or both of these mitigating factors, the risk that borrowers receive less competitive terms increases, such as, for example, when there is time pressure due to the borrower’s default.

Conclusion

The Report does not identify specific anti-competitive practices nor does it set out concrete enforcement recommendations. Rather, it highlights certain risk factors within the loan syndication business and areas that merit further analysis that may inform the EC’s policy. This may indicate heightened regulatory interest in the syndicated loan business in the short-term.

The Report takes with one hand, but gives with the other. It identifies certain market features that could facilitate collusion, but it then sets out certain “critical safeguards” that can mitigate the competitive risks outlined above. First, banks can place an emphasis on their duty of care to clients, including the prevention and management of conflicts of interest and the impartial provision of advice to clients. Second, banks can have transparent and enforceable measures in place to prevent the exchange of information, especially between syndication and origination desks. Third, banks can limit the tying of ancillary services to syndicated loans.

In any case, the Report does not suggest any concrete enforcement actions and does not expressly call for comments. As such, it is still an open question which antitrust enforcement  action, if any, the EC will take as regards to syndicated loans.

Photo of Johan Ysewyn Johan Ysewyn

Johan is widely respected as a highly skilled European competition lawyer, advising on complex competition issues, including on merger control, anti-cartel enforcement, monopolisation cases and other conduct investigations. He acts as co-head of the firm’s Global Competition group and as managing partner of…

Johan is widely respected as a highly skilled European competition lawyer, advising on complex competition issues, including on merger control, anti-cartel enforcement, monopolisation cases and other conduct investigations. He acts as co-head of the firm’s Global Competition group and as managing partner of the Brussels office.

Clients turn to Johan when they need cutting-edge competition and regulatory advice. He has been advising some of the world’s leading companies for over 30 years on their most complex competition issues. Johan is “an exceptional lawyer who is solution-oriented, has a remarkable ability to rapidly understand our business and has excellent reactivity” (Chambers Global).  Johan “attracts considerable praise for his reliable practice, as well as his great energy and insight into cartel proceedings” (Who’s Who Legal). “Johan Ysewyn has a unique understanding of the EC and a very helpful network of connections across Brussels. (…) One of the best European competition lawyers” (Legal 500).

Johan represents clients from around the world in dealings with competition authorities as well as in court litigation. He has in-depth knowledge of regulatory procedures and best practices as well as longstanding relationships with key regulators, in particular at the European Commission. He has also an active advisory practice covering a range of areas of interest to corporates, including the interplay between ESG goals and competition law, the impact of competition law enforcement on digital markets and broad strategic compliance issues.

Johan’s experience spans many industry sectors, with recent experience in telecoms and information technology, media, healthcare, consumer goods, retail, energy and transport. He has advised on several of the most major merger investigations in recent years. In addition, he has represented clients in many conduct investigations.

Johan’s practice also has a strong focus on global and European cartel investigations. He has acted for the immunity applicants in the bitumen and marine hose cartels, and acted for defendants in alleged cartels in financial services, consumer goods, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, consumer electronics and price benchmarking in the oil sector. He has acted for the European Payments Council in the first European Commission investigation into standardisation agreements in the e-payments sector. Johan has written and lectured extensively on international cartel and leniency-related issues. He co-authors the loose-leaf European Cartel Digest and lectures on cartel law and economics at the Brussels School of Competition.

Johan is also one of the leading experts on EU State aid issues, working both for beneficiaries and governments. He has advised a number of leading banks and governments, as well as represented major European airlines. From the cases that can be publicly disclosed, he has been involved in the Fortis, KBC, Dexia, Arco, Citadele, airBaltic and Riga Airport State aid cases.