Key differences to bank lending

• Access to debt across all levels of the capital structure (senior, second mortgage, stretch-senior/unitranche, mezzanine and preferred equity)
• More flexibility on structure and terms (LTV, LTC, covenants, headroom, cash sweep, equity release, fixed rates)
• Increased speed of execution (shorter credit processes, increased access to decision makers)
• Potentially larger-hold capability
• Active monitoring of loans or underlying projects during the life of the loan

Issues to consider

• Generally unable to provide revolving facilities or ancillary services (hedging, transactional banking etc.)
• Higher returns required for increased flexibility