Merz Completes Inaugural €450 Million Schuldschein Loan Issuance

• Debut transaction more than three times oversubscribed

FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Merz Group has successfully completed its first-ever Schuldschein loan issuance, placing a total volume of €450 million in the debt capital market – a multiple of three relating to the launch volume. The debut transaction was significantly oversubscribed and attracted strong interest from all investor groups. The proceeds were settled and paid out today.

The transaction comprises both fixed- and floating-rate tranches with maturities of three, five, seven, and ten years. Around 50 German and international investors participated, representing a broad range of institutions, including private banks, German federal state-owned banks, public savings banks, cooperative banks, pension funds and occupational pension institutions.

With the successful placement, Merz has further diversified its funding base by complementing its existing syndicated financing arrangements with an additional source of long-term capital. The transaction also broadens the company’s investor base and enhances the diversification and resilience of its overall financing structure.

The transaction was arranged by BNP Paribas and DZ BANK. Hogan Lovells Cadwalader acted as legal counsel to Merz Pharma Group.

Dr. Almuth Steinkühler, Chief Financial Officer Merz Group:

“The strong demand for our inaugural Schuldschein loan reflects investors’ confidence in Merz Group’s financial strength, long-term growth prospects, and strategic direction. By successfully accessing the Schuldschein market, we have further diversified our funding sources, strengthened our financial flexibility and created a solid foundation to support the group’s future organic and inorganic growth.”

Karsten Kabas, Senior Vice President Group Treasury, Insurance & Financial Investments Merz Group:

“We are particularly pleased that our debut transaction not only generated exceptionally strong demand but also enabled us to achieve a credit spread of less than 100 basis points on the five-year benchmark tranche. In addition, we successfully attracted investors for a ten-year tranche, underscoring the market’s confidence in Merz as a long-term borrower.”

About Merz Group

Founded in 1908, Merz Group is a family-owned company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany. The group comprises seven companies, including its three largest businesses: Merz Aesthetics, one of the world's leading providers of aesthetic medicine products and treatments; Merz Therapeutics, a pharmaceutical company focused on neurological disorders; and Merz Lifecare, a provider of over-the-counter healthcare products with well-known brands such as tetesept, Merz Spezial, SOS, and Zirkulin. With these brands, Merz Lifecare is one of the market leaders in the German-speaking region.

Merz Group employs more than 5,500 people worldwide and generated approximately €2.5 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year.