Bobby Ginn Video Provides Details of Credit Suisse Debt Facility
Credit Suisse did not lend Bobby $675 million. They brought a consortium of about 50 private investors to the table.
Palm Coast, Florida – August 29, 2008 – Bobby Ginn’s multi-billion dollar project in West End, near Freeport in the Bahamas is one of four Ginn properties potentially affected by the recent default by Ginn related entities on a $675 million credit facility. To assure the Bahamian public that the project was still on track, Bobby paid a visit on August 6th to provide a media briefing and tour.
The video of his presentation reveals more details of the credit facility itself. The facility is not a bank loan. Credit Suisse did not lend the $675 million to Ginn. Credit Suisse acted as a sponsor for about 50 private investors. Specific properties were pledged as collateral for the non-recourse loan.
At Ginn sur Mer, 868 home sites, primarily oceanfront, were pledged (site map). About 200 have been sold and closed. Ginn stressed that the core of the Ginn sur Mer project is outside the credit facility and debt free. $124 million remain in a bankruptcy protected escrow account to fund the remaining canal system and infrastructure. $36 million remains in escrow to assure the completion of the first golf course.
The loan was structured like a line of credit. It was paid down as properties were sold, opening up the credit line for further borrowing.
Property within three other Ginn projects are also encumbered within the loan facility:
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Tesoro, in Port St. Lucie, Florida
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Quail West, in Naples, Florida
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Laurelmor, near Boone, NC
Negotiations between Ginn and the lenders have been protracted. Since the loan is non-recourse, the lenders options are limited and any final agreement must be approved by all 50 private investors. Since all the involved parties are private entities, reports of any progress or lack thereof are not likely to be forthcoming.
Watch the video and see Bobby Ginn in action. He’s calm and factual when discussing the credit facility and escrow accounts, but his explanation of whether or not money from the credit facility was used to fund the escrow accounts was a bit fuzzy. Bobby was uncomfortable and less forthcoming when asked where the money to build out the vertical part of the project would come from. And he never mentioned his funding partner, Lubert-Adler, by name.
Bobby Ginn’s $Travails$
Dear Toby:
You may be on to something about Arabs negotiating for a piece of the Ginn empire. I understand Ginn Company at Tesoro is putting on a group trip to Dubai, UAE in the next few months for property owners and others. Maybe the UAE folks swimming in fortunes bled from the US will reinvest some of it and rescue the Florida operation.