2017

• Annual financing costs fall by more than EUR 2 million
• Positive effects on cash flow, net assets and earnings
• Considerable reduction in financial liabilities

Haselünne, October 18, 2017 – Berentzen-Gruppe Aktiengesellschaft, listed on the regulated market (General Standard) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (ISIN: DE0005201602), today repaid its corporate bond (ISIN: DE000A1RE1V3) of EUR 50.0 million issued in 2012 at the end of the five-year term in accordance with the bond conditions. The repayment was made together with the last interest payment to the bond holders.

The Berentzen Group took advantage of the favourable interest rates back at the end of 2016 to secure partial refinancing of the bond by a syndicated loan with a financing scope of EUR 25.5 million. The corresponding financing agreement was concluded with a syndicate of banks headed up by Deutsche Postbank AG. “Thanks to our positive earnings situation and the related strong liquidity position, we were able to repay the other half of the bond using available equity”, explains Ralf Brühöfner, Executive Board member of the Berentzen Group responsible for Finance and other areas.

“Today’s repayment means that our annual financing costs will fall by more than EUR 2 million”, Ralf Brühöfner continues. This is due, he says, to a financing volume that has been roughly halved, an optimised financing structure (because it is more flexible) and last but not least the more favourable interest rates for the syndicated loan. “Because of the lower amount of external financing and the attractive terms, there are direct positive effects both on cash flow and on earnings”, Ralf Brühöfner is pleased to announce, going on to explain: “By reducing our financial liabilities, we also improve the structure of our balance sheet.”

The Berentzen Group had issued the corporate bond in October 2012 with a term of five years, a fixed interest rate of 6.5% p.a. and a minimum investment of EUR 1,000.

“Today’s repayment is a strong signal which demonstrates that we as a corporate group are on a solid footing. Unfortunately, the market disruptions of recent years mean that SME bonds are currently no longer advantageous. As a result, we are happy to have closed this chapter in our corporate financing”, concludes Ralf Brühöfner.