Transactional Finance Volume Up Significantly in Fast Start to 2024

Ballard Spahr’s national Finance Department is off to a busy start to the year, with closed-deal volume pushing past $6 billion, well ahead of 2023’s pace as the end of Q1 2024 approaches.

Since January 1, Ballard Spahr finance lawyers have advised on dozens of matters aggregating more than $6 billion in successfully closed transactions, with individual deal values up to $1.1 billion. The raised proceeds are being used to fund a variety of public and private projects and asset portfolios, spanning military, workforce, affordable, and single-family rental housing, as well as industrial, green manufacturing, transit infrastructure, educational facilities, and other asset classes.

Ballard Spahr Finance Department Co-Chairs Dominic J. De Simone and Emilie R. Ninan attribute the strong first-quarter performance to stabilizing deal markets and expect the department’s attorneys to close a number of additional deals by the end of the month. The surge reflects a national trend: Corporate bond issuance volume through February is up more than 31 percent from the same period last year, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) reported. Further, the U.S. municipal bond market trading volume is up more than 36 percent this year from the same period in 2023, likely a reflection of stable financing costs and growing investor sentiment that a serious recession can be averted.

Ballard Spahr advised on the following Q1 2024 transactions:

• $500 million municipal green bond financing for Hanwha Q CELLS. Green bond volume and sustainability-linked bond deal activity are expected to grow in 2024 in response to demand for environmental and energy-related projects. Stephanie S. Kim and Randall J. Towers led the Ballard Spahr team.
• $419 million refinancing transaction for Greystone to finance Florida's tallest building—the 85-story Panorama Tower, a mixed-use high-rise with 821 residences in Downtown Miami. The financing included a structured Freddie Mac loan and an investment led by a global pension fund. Class A mixed-use and multifamily properties continue to draw capital amid sustained demand for quality multifamily housing nationwide. Juan Pereira led the Ballard Spahr team.
• $305 million bond issuance for The Michaels Organization to fund its development of Army housing at seven U.S. Army installations across the country over five years. The collaboration between the Army and Michaels reflects the increased use of public-private collaboration for infrastructure improvements, including social infrastructure, such as military housing. Jere G. Thompson and Kimberly D. Magrini led the Ballard Spahr team.
• $203 million tax-exempt securities transaction for Preston Hollow Community Capital. The Tax-Exempt Pooled Securities financing was accomplished through the Public Finance Authority (PFA), an agency created by local governments for the purpose of issuing tax-exempt and taxable conduit bonds for public and private entities nationwide. The PFA leverages government involvement to lower interest rates for borrowers, primarily through the issuance of tax-exempt bonds and credit enhancement. Benjamin W. Johnson and William C. Rhodes led the Ballard Spahr team.

The firm’s Finance attorneys also represented a national bank, as agent and lender, in closing a $700 million syndicated financing to a top private REIT, secured by a portfolio of dozens of industrial properties in more than 10 states. The team used Ballard360 client-facing technology to efficiently organize and provide working group access to hundreds of documents involved in the transaction.

Additionally in the first quarter, Ballard Spahr represented a leading national multifamily finance company in land acquisition and development financings for four different single-family residential rental projects across three states. Total debt volume exceeded $155 million and involved various developer groups. All four projects were funded through private equity investors and/or crowdsourced equity raises.

For media inquiries, please contact Will Ashenmacher at 612.371.5792.