White & Case scoops Mittal Steel remit

White & Case has won the instruction to advise the lead arrangers providing the financing of Mittal Steel's €26.9bn (£18.59bn) acquisition of rival Arcelor.

The deals will be financed through a €10.8bn (£7.47bn) syndicated loan, which consists of a €5bn (£3.45bn) and a €2.8bn (£1.93bn) acquisition line. The remaining €3bn (£2.07bn) of the loan will be used to finance existing debt.

A London-based White & Case team, led by banking partners Maurice Allen and Christopher Kandel, is acting for the lead arrangers Goldman Sachs, Citibank, HSBC, Commerzbank, Credit Suisse, Société Générale, Caja de Ahorros y Monte De Piedad de Madrid, Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds TSB. Another White & Case partner, Claire Dennison, is advising issuer Rabobank.

Arcelor's numerous stock exchange listings remain the main driver of legal complexity in the financing.  
London-based Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton partner Andrew Shutter is advising Mittal on the financing aspects of the acquisition.