Lumibird Secures €140m of Euro pp and Bank Financing to Support Its Strategic Ambitions

Lannion, December 2, 2020 – 7:45am

LUMIBIRD secures €140m of Euro PP and bank financing TO SUPPORT ITS STRATEGIC AMBITIONS

The LUMIBIRD Group, the European leader for laser technologies, is announcing that it has set up €100m of bank financing and completed a €40m Euro PP social impact bond issue. With these financing facilities, the LUMIBIRD Group has increased its capacity for investment by over €100m and aims to double its revenues between 2020 and 2023. This target is based on organic growth for one third and external growth for two thirds.

The LUMIBIRD Group is announcing today that it has set up €140m of financing based on a seven-year maturity with a view to securing continued growth around its already successful model that combines organic and external growth. LUMIBIRD aims to double its revenues between 2020 and 2023, with growth concentrated on its three strategic markets: Medical, Lidar and Defense / Space. Investments will focus on strengthening technologies, particularly for Lidar, and acquiring market shares and production capacity, primarily in the Medical and Defense / Space sectors. Modeled on previous acquisitions (Quantel, Optotek, Halo Photonics, Ellex), each new external growth operation is expected to help accelerate organic growth. These objectives will be presented in further detail when the Group reports its revenues on January 25 next year.

This financing brought together bank lenders and bond investors. Alongside traditional financial covenants, the Euro PP bond includes two “impact” covenants, which contractually set out the borrower’s commitment to:

• increasing the percentage of employees with disabilities at the various sites in France each year
• increasing the number of employees on permanent contracts at the Lannion site

The financing rate will be adjusted based on compliance with these impact covenants through to the loan’s maturity.

Part of the financing was drawn down today on closing, with the balance to be released within 12 or 24 months depending on the pace of acquisitions.

These new lines made it possible to clear the €35m line set up in June 2019, while putting in place €105m of new capacity for financing external growth, alongside the cash position of over €78m at June 30, 2020.

This financing was set up under very attractive conditions (average rate of around 2.4%), and the amount and the timeframe for the commitment made by the lenders confirm the Lumibird Group’s strong credit rating and its robust development model through organic and external growth.

Key participants in the operation:

Company advisors: Midcap Partners

Bank debt / arranger: Crédit Agricole Côtes d’Armor

Bank debt / lenders: Crédit Agricole Côtes d’Armor, Arkea, Banque CIC Ouest, Banque Populaire Grand Ouest, Caisse d’Epargne Bretagne- Pays de Loire, LCL

Euro PP bonds: Artemid, Eiffel IG, La Banque Postale AM, SP Gestion

Legal advisors for the company: Strateys

Legal advisors for the Euro PP lenders: Kramer Levin

Next date:

2020 full-year revenues and 2023 objectives on January 25, 2021 (after close of trading)

LUMIBIRD is one of the world's leading specialists in lasers. With 50 years of experience and a mastering of solid state laser, laser diodes and fiber laser technologies, the Group designs, manufactures and markets high performance lasers for scientific (laboratories and universities), industrial (manufacturing, defense, Lidar sensors) and medical (ophthalmology) markets.

Born from the combination of Keopsys Group with Quantel in October 2017, LUMIBIRD has more than 800 employees and over €110 million of revenues in 2019 and is present in Europe, America and Asia.

LUMIBIRD shares are listed on the Euronext Paris B Compartment. FR0000038242 – LBIRD  

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