Metro Funding Corp. (MFC), a private asset-based lender, headquartered in Paramus, N.J., announces the funding of a $1,300,000 loan for the refinance of two restaurants in Larchmont, New York and a Strip Mall Center in Jupiter, FL.

The borrower approached MFC with the need to pay off delinquent property taxes on a Strip Mall Center he recently inherited. These delinquent taxes needed to be paid off quickly before the property would be put up for auction. In effort to save this property, MFC tried to be as creative as possible and requested additional collateral. The borrower was able to provide two operating restaurants in Larchmont, NY. “Although many businesses are staying afloat in today’s difficult economy, conventional banks are unable to provide funding in the time needed to satisfy borrowers. MFC remains stable, though, and is able to fund quickly, giving borrowers the opportunity to continue running their businesses smoothly,” says Senior Underwriter, Jason Lasser. By providing the additional two restaurants, MFC was able to aid in paying off the delinquent taxes in time to save the property. The borrower continues to be a proud owner of the Strip Mall Center and is running both restaurants in Larchmont successfully.

Metro Funding Corp., headquartered in Paramus, NJ, is a commercial real estate lending company specializing in asset-based opportunity (hard money) loans. Metro Funding Corp. provides loans globally to corporations unable to obtain financing from conventional sources due to the immediacy or complexity of the transactions.

Web site: http://www.metrofundingcorp.com/

NS&I is to launch a new 2-year issue of both its Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds. The new 2-year Bonds will only be available direct (via phone or online) from NS&I and will pay an interest rate of 3.75% per annum and 3.65% respectively.

Customers can invest between GBP500 and GBP1 million in total in the fixed rate bonds, with guaranteed rates of interest. The Guaranteed Income Bond offers customers the opportunity to receive their interest as a monthly income, while with the Guaranteed Growth Bond customers will receive their interest at the end of the 2-year term.

The Bonds come with the 100% capital guarantee which NS&I can offer because all of its savings and investments are backed by HM Treasury.

The new Bonds, which are available online and through NS&I’s award winning UK based call centres, are part of NS&I’s strategy to encourage customers to buy and manage their savings with NS&I directly. This enables NS&I to offer a more attractive interest rate to customers.

Peter Cornish, Director of Customer Offer at NS&I, said: “Our Guaranteed Income Bonds and Guaranteed Growth Bonds offer customers a simple and straightforward saving opportunity.

“Money saved in our Guaranteed Income Bonds or our Guaranteed Growth Bonds will earn a competitive and guaranteed rate of interest for the next two years. It is a simple offer and easy to take up, either online at nsandi.com or through our UK based call centres.”

Dr Robin Keyte, Chartered Financial Planner and Director of Towers at Taunton Ltd, which specialises in fee-based financial planning and socially responsible investments, commented on the new issues from NS&I: “NS&I’s Guaranteed Growth Bonds and Guaranteed Income Bonds are an effective way for customers to earn a fixed rate of interest on their investment, either as monthly income or as a lump sum at the end of the term. Like all NS&I investments, they also have the added benefit of a 100% capital guarantee, which is something many people will value highly in the current environment.”

About NS&I
NS&I is one of the UK’s largest financial providers with almost 27 million customers and over GBP94 billion invested. It is best known for Premium Bonds, but also offers Inflation-Beating Savings, Guaranteed Equity Bonds and Children’s Bonus Bonds in its range. All products offer 100% security because NS&I is backed by HM Treasury.

NS&I products are available over the telephone, internet, post and by standing order. They are also available through a network of Post Office branches. Customers can also pick up brochures for NS&I Premium Bonds, Inflation-Beating Savings and Income Bonds at retailer WHSmith in 400 of its High Street stores and 155 of its travel stores.

http://www.nsandi.com/

After servicing the Latin American and Caribbean market from it’s London office for several years, on the 1st of July, APAX opened up an office in Panama City to facilitate the huge demand for its credit card processing and electronic payment products from merchants in that area. The Panama office is specialized in offering card processing and electronic payment solutions to merchants selling mostly digital goods online in that region of the world. APAX CEO Peter Arnold states, “APAX has a worldwide credit card processing network that operates through our processing banks to provide merchants with reliable credit card processing services. We have become one of the most competitive card processing companies in the industry without compromising quality. Our organization is also a leading provider of electronic payment processing services (e.g., checks, EFT) to corporations and fulfillment companies. Within the last five years we have seen a steadily increasing demand for our products especially from online merchants of various industries. Panama and Costa Rica have become a hub for those merchants. It is a logical step for APAX to open an office in that region in order to better service our customers.”

APAX Global Payment & Technologies AG is one of the leading international providers of electronic payment and risk management solutions. APAX is dedicated to serving cardholders and their merchants by facilitating payment anywhere and anytime. Worldwide, we support processing for more than 100,000 cardholders and their merchants from various industries a day. APAX provides accounts and credit card services both for business and private customers. For further information, please contact www.e-apax.com

The Wornick Company, a leading manufacturer of ready-to-eat shelf stable food, announced today that it has finalized a refinancing of its senior credit facilities which increases the company’s borrowing base by $10 million and provides additional financing to continue to invest in the company and pursue profitable growth.
The refinancing includes:

A new $15 million term loan facility provided by DDJ Capital Management, LLC (“DDJ”), which replaces the company’s $10 million term loan with DDJ; and
A new $30 million revolving credit facility through PNC Business Credit (“PNC”), the asset-based lending arm of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc, which replaces the company’s $25 million revolver with DDJ. PNC Business Credit loans are provided by PNC Bank, N.A.
“The fact that we were able to obtain this new financing in the current economic environment demonstrates the strength of our operations and balance sheet,” said Jon Geisler, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Wornick Company. “It also shows that our senior lenders have confidence in our business plan and our ability to continue to grow profitably. We intend to continue to make the necessary investments in our business so that we can support new customer requirements while maintaining our position as an industry leading provider of shelf-stable, flexibly packaged food products,” Mr. Geisler said.

The new term loan with DDJ has a 39 month term and includes an additional “surge” provision above the $15 million term note, which provides additional financing that will allow Wornick to handle surge orders from the U.S. Government. The new revolving credit facility expires in June of 2012.

About The Wornick Company

The Wornick Company is a technological leader in making the best tasting, ready-to-eat shelf stable food that has a long useable shelf life at ambient conditions in flexible, non-canned packaging. In addition to our state of the art production capabilities, Wornick resources are dedicated to new product and service development, supplier base and logistics management and the integration of nutrition with other products and services to enable people to subsist in very austere environments. For the very best quality shelf stable food, in flexible packaging, you can rely on The Wornick Company.

For more information, please visit http://www.wornick.com.

Aurora Oil & Gas Corporation (Pink Sheets: AOGS) today announced that on July 12, 2009, Aurora and its subsidiary, Hudson Pipeline & Processing Co., LLC (together, the “Companies”) filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Michigan.

The Companies will continue to operate their businesses as “debtors-in-possession” in accordance with sections 1107 and 1108 and other applicable provisions of the Bankruptcy Code, which require court approval of matters outside the ordinary course of business. No trustee, examiner, or official committee has been appointed.

The Companies have worked diligently to facilitate a global restructuring transaction, including entering into several amendments and forbearance agreements with BNP Paribas and the lenders under the Senior Secured Credit Facility and D.E. Shaw Laminar Portfolios, LLC and the lenders under the Second Lien Term Loan. The Companies have not yet been able to obtain agreement on the terms of such a restructuring and intend to utilize the bankruptcy process to attempt to achieve a consensual restructuring or some other appropriate alternative.

Huron Consulting Group, LLC (“Huron”) continues to advise Aurora on its restructuring efforts, focusing on cost reduction and containment initiatives, streamlining the organization, and facilitating communication with its lender and other creditor constituencies.

Mr. Sanford R. Edlein, the Companies’ Chief Restructuring Officer and a Managing Director with Huron, commented, “We hope to use Chapter 11 to facilitate a global restructuring of the Companies’ debt obligations and expect to work on a consensual plan with the lenders to minimize our time in bankruptcy, while at the same time exploring other potential value-maximizing opportunities. Among other petitions for relief, the Companies have sought authority to make royalty payments and to satisfy other obligations of critical vendors. Ultimately, we hope to operate in Chapter 11 in the ordinary course as was done prior to this bankruptcy filing.”

About Aurora Oil & Gas Corporation

Aurora Oil & Gas Corporation is an independent energy company focused on unconventional natural gas exploration, acquisition, development and production, with its primary operations in the Antrim Shale of Michigan, the New Albany Shale of Indiana and Kentucky.

Global foreign direct investment (FDI) is still prevalent despite economic woes but is undergoing a major transition in response to the global crisis with the UK expected to see a drop of up to 25% in the next twelve months, according to a new report by the foreign investment advisory firm OCO Global (OCO).
OCO’s report entitled, “A New Investment Paradigm” reviews key issues around foreign investment and explores some of the fundamental issues such as:
- the decreasing role of Greenfield investment in favour of lower risk expansion modes such as M&A and Joint Ventures – the growing importance and impact of FDI from Sovereign Wealth Funds, often originating from developing countries in the Middle East and Asia – the rise of co-location and re-location from overheated capital cities in Europe and the UK to Tier 2 cities such as Lyon, Nantes, Antwerp, Bologna, Liverpool, Leeds and Belfast. A similar trend is unfolding in the US.
Whilst analysts disagree on the severity of the impact on global FDI in the short term, the report indicates a consensus that there will be a downturn this year anywhere up to 30% in the worst affected sectors.
Mark O’Connell, CEO of OCO Global commented, “A soft landing this year for the UK could see drops of around 10%-15% overall in FDI flows, with worse case scenarios in the 20-25% range. The UK is fortunate as it has strong propositions across a number of sectors including anti-cyclical ones such as Cleantech and Healthcare which have provided a cushion. OCO forecast that by this time next year, FDI volumes in the UK will be on the increase again so the pain is relatively short term.”
The volumes and value of Greenfield are unlikely to recover to 2007/8 levels for at least 3 years. Cross border M&A was fastest to contract in response to the liquidity crisis; interestingly it is showing early signs of recovery in 2009.
Mark O’Connell, CEO of OCO Global added: “The FDI market, as we have come to understand it, in the last decade has experienced some radical changes in the last 12 months. These changes have altered the leading sectors, source markets, types of projects and the drivers behind investment decisions. For the UK Government, there’s a delicate balance to strike in terms of retaining its leading position as a destination for foreign investment projects in Europe, while trying to reposition the UK sectors and competences further up the value chain.”
In the UK, there’s already been an adjustment by the Regional Development Agencies led by UKTI in the last decade to attracting smaller, knowledge driven type of investment and this has formed the basis of the UK’s resilience. It’s current competitiveness is also due in part to a floating currency making it attractive for US and European investors. The report highlights, that the FDI game continues to change and requires more radical interventions, fresh thinking and flexibility from Government economic development organisations about the role and importance of FDI in their overall strategy.
“Assuming organisations can respond quickly to changes, the benefits of FDI in technology transfer and competitiveness should continue to outweigh some of the often cited disadvantages such as the smaller employment footprints and the risks associated with foreign ownership,” said O’Connell.

About OCO Global
OCO Global is a leading advisory firm specialising in foreign investment. It has more than 40 staff and offices in Belfast, London, Paris, Brussels and New York. Its range of services includes Outsourced solutions for Economic development agencies globally and it also works to provide Corporate Location Advice to the private sector.

Philip Morris International Inc. [NYSE/Euronext Paris: PM] (PMI) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to purchase 100% of the shares of privately owned Colombian cigarette manufacturer, Productora Tabacalera de Colombia, Protabaco Ltda. (Protabaco), for $452 million.

Protabaco is the second largest tobacco company in Colombia, with an estimated 2008 volume of 6.1 billion cigarettes and an approximate market share of 31.8%. The Company reported net revenues of approximately $107.6 million in 2008. Its leading brands include Mustang, Premier and President.

“We are extremely pleased to reach this agreement with Protabaco in order to continue to build our business in this important and strategic market,” said Miroslaw Zielinski, President of PMI’s Latin America and Canada Region. “This strategically compelling transaction will provide PMI with an excellent opportunity to further develop Protabaco’s strong brand portfolio and reflects the continuing confidence we have in the future of Colombia, its economy and the tobacco industry.”

In 2005, PMI acquired Compañía Colombiana de Tabaco S.A. (Coltabaco). Since then, PMI has continued to invest in Coltabaco, its employees and its infrastructure, as well as in social and economic programs in Colombia, including investments in the tobacco growing sector.

“This is an excellent development for Protabaco and our employees,” said Jaime Delgado, General Manager Protabaco. “PMI is well known as a successful manufacturer and marketer of quality tobacco products and we believe they are in an excellent position to continue to develop our strong brands and strong organization.”

The transaction, which is subject to competition authority approval and final confirmatory due diligence, is projected to be immediately marginally accretive to PMI’s earnings per share and is expected to close within the next six months.

About Philip Morris International Inc.

Philip Morris International (PMI) [NYSE / Euronext Paris: PM] is the leading international tobacco company, with seven of the world’s top 15 brands including Marlboro, the number one cigarette brand worldwide. PMI has more than 75,000 employees and its products are sold in approximately 160 countries. In 2008, the company held an estimated 15.6% share of the total international cigarette market outside of the U.S. For more information, see www.pmintl.com.