Founded in 1980 and headquartered in Perth, Scotland, Stagecoach Group Limited (Stagecoach) is one of the UK’s largest transport operators with around 23,000 employees, connecting more than 100 major towns, cities and villages across England, Scotland and Wales through its bus, coach, and tram services. Stagecoach was recently ranked as the top bus operator in the UK for addressing climate change, being awarded an A-rating from CDP¹, which put the company in the top 6% of the 23,000 businesses who participate in the scheme.

Stagecoach was acquired by DWS in 2022 with NatWest acting as Sole Advisor and fully underwriting the financing at the time of acquisition. DWS aspires to be one of the world’s leading asset managers², investing in airports, transportation, utilities and energy-related assets. Building on more than 25 years of experience, DWS has been involved in landmark infrastructure transactions across the globe.

Stagecoach approached NatWest for support in structuring and raising incremental financing as Sole Ratings Advisor and Debt Advisor for the next stage of their evolution. We established a streamlined, long-term single financing platform consolidating the debt both at the OpCo and MidCo levels, whilst refinancing its current debt facilities. During the process, NatWest also provided further support to Stagecoach by serving as the Independent Financial Advisor for the redemption of the publicly traded bond. Maintaining an Investment Grade rating was a key objective of this refinancing process for Stagecoach, and we are thrilled to have supported this as Sole Ratings Advisor. NatWest also helped Stagecoach raise new Institutional Term debt as a Joint Private Placement Agent, attracting interest from US and European investors, alongside a diversified bank group. The financing comprises around £750 million in bank liquidity and approximately £250 million in Institutional debt through multiple Private Placement tranches, aiding Stagecoach's future growth.

NatWest is pleased to have also provided financing as a Mandated Lead Arranger under a separate NatWest Bank lending team.

Bruce Dingwall, Chief Financial Officer, Stagecoach, commented: “We are delighted to have secured this financing package to support our transition at Stagecoach. The streamlined financing platform across various maturities provides a structure which will support our evolution and deliver enhanced services for our passengers and communities across the UK as we continue our transition to support the UK's decarbonisation objectives.  A big thank you to the NatWest team for their expertise and advice throughout a complex process to structure a finance package which supports our financing needs.”

Alex Snow, Head of Infrastructure & Project Finance, NatWest, said: “Stagecoach plays a key role in the UK’s transport sector. It has been serving communities for over 40 years and has launched an exciting sustainability strategy that will deliver significant social and environmental benefits. We are delighted to support DWS and Stagecoach with our advisory, lending and placement services.”

Sonia Gadhia, Head of European Private Placement Distribution at NatWest added: “We are very pleased to have partnered with Stagecoach and DWS on this important financing. The institutional piece saw good demand across both US and UK investors, creating a strong platform for future issuance. The Private Placement featured a floating rate tranche with full prepayment flexibility which is unusual for Investment Grade deals and included significant interest from an infrastructure investor who is new to the Private Placement market. It’s great to see the flexibility on offer from investors and the growing investor demand for transport assets that are playing a crucial role in achieving net zero.”  

[1] https://www.cdp.net/en/responses/17634

[2] https://www.dws.com/en-gb/our-profile/facts-and-figures/