Paris-based REIT Societe Fonciere Lyonnaise has signed a credit agreement with a consortium of French banks to restructure a €300 mln facility.

Paris-based REIT Societe Fonciere Lyonnaise has signed a credit agreement with a consortium of French banks to restructure a €300 mln facility.

The original facility was granted in October 2009 by a consortium of banks led by BNP Paribas.

In a statement, the company said it has received a new €400 mln syndicated loan with a five-year term. 'This new loan enables SFL to increase its immediately available liquidity while also extending the average maturity of its debt and reducing its financing margin significantly,' the Paris-listed company said.

The bank consortium includes Banque Européenne du Crédit Mutuel, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Crédit Agricole Mutuel de Paris et d’Ile-de-France, Crédit Foncier de France, HSBC France, Natixis and Société Générale.

BNP Paribas acted as the agent for the group.

Also this week, French retail operator Casino announced the signing of a five-year credit facility for €770 mln with a group of 10 international banks. The banks taking part are JPMorgan and RBS (coordinating banks), Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Barclays, Citi, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Mizuho Bank.

This credit line refinances an existing three-year facility signed in August 2011.