New York City Franchise Securitization Financings

Engaging in the successful securitization financing of a franchisor’s royalty stream can be a most complex endeavor requiring a particularly sophisticated skill set to enable a franchisor to take advantage of the markedly lower finance costs (versus conventional bank financing) associated with this type of financing transaction.

No successful securitization of a franchisor’s royalty stream had ever been achieved until 2000, when Kaufmann Gildin – – working with one of the nation’s most prestigious law firms – – quite literally conceived the structural template underlying the nation’s first ever successful franchisor securitization (that involving Arby’s, Inc.).

We are proud to note that every subsequent securitization financing of a franchisor’s royalty stream has followed the template we established (sometimes with minor variations) and that we have been involved in nearly all of them, serving as counsel to the securitizing franchisor; its investment banker; or, the insurer of the securitization notes (commonly referred to as the “monoline” or “wrapper”).

Kaufmann Gildin has thus proven integral to the following securitization transaction, among others:

  • The Blackstone Group/Hilton Hotels Corporation ($21 billion).
  • Dunkin Brands, Inc. ($1.6 billion).
  • Sonic Corporation ($600 million).
  • Arby’s, Inc. ($300 million).
  • Domino’s Pizza LLC ($1.7 billion).
  • IHOP Franchising, LLC ($175 million).

In each of these transactions, Kaufmann Gildin’s skill, expertise and knowledge base resulted in seamless transactions which yielded myriad benefits to the franchisors in question while minimizing the distractions that securitization financings can sometimes engender.

As with all other aspects of Kaufmann Gildin’s service, every effort is undertaken to minimize the fees associated with securitization activities. We know the enormous pressure that corporate counsel are under to keep their budgets in line and to minimize outside counsel fees. And we make every effort to help them do just that.

We thank you for your interest in Kaufmann Gildin’s franchise securitization finance practice. We invite you to learn more about us and give us the opportunity to learn more about you. Come visit us at our New York City office’s – – or let us visit you at your office. Attend one of the many gatherings where Kaufmann, Gildin and Robbins attorneys offer their insights to business leaders; government officials; the media; and, other attorneys. Or simply call us and ask how we can help you.