Success Story ProSiebenSat.1

“Over the past few years we have developed a close cooperation with Commerzbank. The expertise of the team combined with their market knowledge, means our needs are matched with those of the market.”

Ralf P. Gierig
Deputy CFO
ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE

Return to the bond market

ProSiebenSat.1 Group is one of the largest independent media corporations in Europe. With the stations ProSieben, SAT.1kabel eins, sixx, SAT.1 Gold, ProSieben MAXX and kabel eins Doku the company is number 1 in Germany both in the TV-advertising market and in the audience market. The group reaches over 42 million TV households every day in the TV markets Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

The background

ProSiebenSat.1 shares have been trading on Germany’s blue-chip DAX index since March 2016 and it is the first media company to be included in the index. In terms of market capitalisation and turnover, the group ranks among the 30 largest listed companies in Germany. To get to where it is today, ProSiebenSat.1 had to manage the challenges it faced on the bond market. While investors are familiar with media companies, they usually know little about their business models in the digital world and what drives their earnings.

The requirement

As part of its group refinancing, in 2014 ProSiebenSat.1 decided to enter the bond market by issuing an unrated seven-year benchmark bond in addition to a syndicated credit financing.

The solution

Commerzbank offers a broad range of financing solutions in debt and equity markets. In this transaction, Commerzbank – the only German bank amongst five active bookrunners – took a leading role. Commerzbank acted as lead arranger and was therefore inter alia mainly responsible for the documentation, i.e. preparation of the offering prospectus, as well as coordinating the process.
To increase the visibility of ProSiebenSat.1 in the bond market and with potential investors, Commerzbank and the other banks involved organised and accompanied them on a three-day roadshow across Europe, meeting with over 150 investors and providing comprehensive information about ProSiebenSat.1 as an issuer. The fruits of this labour were a successful return to the bond market resulting in a 3.5 times oversubscribed orderbook, raising €2.2 billion with over 230 investors from all over Europe.
A decisive factor in making this financing a success was Commerzbank’s global team, who acts very close to the markets. The team’s extensive knowledge and deep understanding of their client’s needs made it possible for them to successfully execute the transaction - in spite of the demanding time frame and equally challenging market conditions. Further drivers of success were ProSiebenSat.1’s own growth story, the strong competitive position and, last but not least, the timing of the issuance. This transaction represents a further milestone in the relationship between ProSiebenSat.1 and Commerzbank – one that is founded upon trust and partnership.


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