Decades of global experience in venture and growth structures
Venture and growth debt offers startups a way to borrow between equity rounds. We act for banks and non-regulated lenders on structuring, drafting and negotiating these transactions.
Our venture and growth lending experience crosses the US, the UK, Ireland, Europe and Asia Pacific. So you get exclusive insights into market terms and deal structures.
Our lawyers have been implementing venture and growth structures for decades. This type of debt is popular among venture capital-backed and private equity-backed companies. It doesn’t dilute investors’ equity and doesn’t create a pricing event.
Early and mid-stage venture capital-backed companies often need to scale their operations and lengthen the cash runway between equity rounds or an M&A deal. We advise banks, credit funds – public, private and SBIC – and BDCs on their lending activities with these companies. This includes domestic and international receivables, term loans and equipment financing facilities, inventory and recurring revenue-based lines of credit, and related warrant and equity rights.
“Our lawyers have been implementing venture and growth structures for decades.”
Likewise, later-stage venture capital-backed and private equity-backed companies often need new capital to achieve profitability, or for an IPO, M&A or recapitalization. Our bank and private credit fund clients provide cash flow facilities, pre-IPO facilities, asset-based lines of credit, hybrid debt and equity facilities, acquisition and buyout facilities, senior and mezzanine term loans and other structured debt arrangements.
We’re 600+ lawyers globally, including our Emerging Growth and Venture Capital practice, which advises founders, entrepreneurs, tech companies, venture funds and financial institutions in this dynamic space. Working with our venture capital team gives us a broad view and a deep understanding of the pressures startups are under.
Our experience in drafting financing documentation – whether for bilateral, co-lender, senior-only or multi-lender transactions – makes a real difference. We understand multi-layered funding and the various intercreditor and security trust arrangements. So our advice takes account of the commercial rationale behind your transactions.
Our clients also benefit from the vast experience of our colleagues in business-relevant legal areas, such as tax, IP, corporate, insurance, life sciences, regulatory and litigation.
Awards and recognition
Experience
Silicon Valley Bank in providing a USD300 million credit facility for Oak Street Health, a network of primary care centers.
SLR Capital Partners in providing a USD225 million term loan facility for Arcutis Biotherapeutics, Inc., a late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing meaningful innovations in immuno-dermatology.
Hercules Capital and Silicon Valley Bank in providing a USD250 million term loan facility for Iveric Bio, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of treatments for retinal diseases.
Hercules Capital in providing a USD200 million term loan facility for Phathom Pharmaceuticals, a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company.
Phoenix Insurance Company in providing a USD200 million financing round for Berlin based phone as a service company everphone. The financing included a borrowing base growth facility provided together with Deutsche Bank.
Hercules Capital in providing a USD150 million new term loan facility for NeueHealth, a value-driven healthcare company.
Hercules Capital in providing a USD150 million credit facility for Convoy, a digital freight network.
Oxford Finance in providing a USD150 million credit facility for Verastem Oncology, a late-stage development biopharmaceutical company, committed to advancing new medicines for patients battling cancer.
Oxford Finance in providing a USD100 million credit facility for Pliant Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing novel therapeutics for the treatment of fibrosis.
Silicon Valley Bank and Oxford Finance LLC in providing a USD100 million secured term loan credit facility for Mersana Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company.
Ares Capital, Kreos Capital and Davidson Technology Growth Debt Fund, in providing USD70 million in growth debt funding to Soundcloud, a music streaming platform designed to offer audio distribution and music sharing services.
SLR Capital Partners in providing a USD65 million term loan facility to Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company focused on oncology therapies.
Hercules Capital in providing GBP40 million of growth debt commitment to Carwow, a car buying comparison site, to scale its ‘Sell Your Car’ division in Europe.
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. in providing a USD750,000 term loan facility for The Uplifters' Prima, PBC, which produces premium hemp products for wellness and skincare. Vækstfonden (the Danish growth fund) on facilitating growth and assisting startups/scaleups by providing matching facilities or equity alongside other debt or equity providers.
