Vishal - Corporate

Hi all,

The deal I have been working on has officially completed and I can now talk about it. Confidentiality is a key issue in deal teams as we often come into contact with market sensitive information. In deal teams, people are very secretive whilst a deal is on and then move to the opposite extreme of actively publicising a deal once it has been completed. So I am now doing my bit in this blog!

The Integrated Finance (IF) Scotland team supported the Secondary Buy-Out of Fishers Services Limited by providing a £40m debt and equity package. Fishers are a leading provider of textile services in Scotland and specialise in the provision of flat linen to hotels, contract laundry and garment rentals. The deal we completed will enable the Company to continue its growth and allowed management to realise value now and obtain a majority equity stake in the business. Bank of Scotland has had a relationship with Fishers for over 80 years and this deal ensures our ongoing relationship for years to come.

Though the deal has completed, our work on this project hasn’t. Over the last two weeks I have been working on the handover process to the Integrated Finance Asset Management team who will maintain the day to day relationship with the Company. I have also been involved with publicising the deal both within the bank and externally i.e. through press releases. Fortunately the late nights have drawn to a close however the downside of this is no more takeaways which mean's I have to cook at home again. Aside of this project, I have been carrying out research into an oil & gas services company and writing an origination note to present my research to the team. I have also completed an analysis on deals which have been completed in Scotland for our regional director. The analysis illustrates who our competitors are and indicates how we are placed within the Scottish Buy-Out market.

Outside of IF, I attended a Bank of Scotland Corporate Assessment Centre on Monday to answer candidate questions about the graduate programme. It wasn’t too long ago when I was doing my best to get through the challenges of the day and asking questions to graduates. I look back at my assessment as a great experience – I guess that’s easy to do when you have been successful. I have to say, I don't envy the candidates and was glad to be there in an assisting capacity only. Good luck to those that were at the assessment centre and to those who will be attending in the future.

I am going to leave the blog here as I have to make my way down to a graduate networking event. This will be an opportunity for all the graduates on the programme to meet and to also network with business managers from various departments in the bank.

Regards,

Vish.