Gerechtshof Amsterdam, 18-04-2019, ECLI:NL:GHAMS:2019:1504, 18/00018 en 18/00019

De rechtbank heeft in haar uitspraak de volgende feiten vastgesteld:

“Groepsstructuur en overname

“The name of the FCPR in which the Investor subscribes will depend on the status of the Investor. By returning the Subscription Agreement, the Investor will authorise [A FONDS] partners (...) to complete the name of the FCPR on its behalf.”

“The FCPR will be managed by the Management Company in accordance with the Investment Policy and to the full extent permitted by law. In particular, the Management Company:

[A FONDS General Partner] Ltd., een dochtervennootschap van de Management Company, is in de reglementen van de FCPR’s aangewezen als de ‘general partner’ van [A FONDS] . [naam bedrijf] treedt op als de juridisch eigenaar en bewaarder van alle vermogensrechten namens en voor rekening van de FCPR’s.

“Application of proceeds

Interest-free Loan Notes still outstanding are redeemed upon the Exit (instead of (as

applicable) converted immediately prior the completion of the Exit), the Redemption Price

of the outstanding Convertible Instruments, Preferred Membership Rights B and Interest-

free Loan Notes will be paid or repaid;

complete the Liquidation, will be distributed as yield to the [A FONDS] Investors and the [B]

Foundation in proportion to their Member Capital.”

“5. SUBORDINATION

Eiseres is bevoegd om eenzijdig op elk moment over te gaan tot conversie van de convertible instruments in ledenkapitaal, dan wel over te gaan tot aflossing. Als hierbij slechts een gedeelte van alle convertible instruments wordt geconverteerd of afgelost, dan vindt dat plaats naar evenredigheid van alle houders van de convertible instruments (‘Optional Redemption’, § 4.2).

Bij een liquidatie van welke aard dan ook heeft eiseres de keuze om te converteren dan wel af te lossen (‘Redemption upon liquidation’, § 4.3).

De houders van de convertible instruments hebben gedurende de looptijd geen enkele mogelijkheid om gehele of gedeeltelijke afwikkeling ervan af te dwingen (‘No Redemption at the Option of the Holders’, § 4.4).

Bovengenoemde Senior Facilities zijn aan [Z] verstrekt door een syndicaat van banken ( [Bank 1] , [Bank 2] en [Bank 3] ), bestaande uit term loans A en B. Gedurende de looptijd van 6-7 jaar wordt op de lening rente betaald en afgelost. Volgens de zogenoemde ‘Term Sheet’ bij deze lening van 19 november 2010 is ervan uitgegaan dat:

“the minimum equity investment provided by the investors and management together in relation tot the Acquisition is at least 50 [noot in de Term Sheet: Lenders might consider a minimum equity investment of 45-50% depending on structure] per cent of the total funding in relation tot he Acquisition (the “Minimum Equity Investment”)”.

In het kader van een derdenonderzoek heeft verweerder in een e-mailbericht van 16 mei 2013 over deze minimum equity het volgende gevraagd en heeft [Bank 2] op 19 juni 2013 - voor zover hier van belang - het volgende geantwoord (antwoord in hoofdletters):

“Voor het antwoord op mijn vraag 4 om de toelichting van [Bank 2] op de wezenlijke functie van de equity contribution (mede gelet op het signaal naar de kapitaalmarkt), de verdeling tussen equity en aandeelhouderslening en de verhandelbaarheid van de aandeelhouderslening aan derde partijen (change of control, change of parties) verwijst u naar het aangepaste verslag van de bespreking op 25 maart 2013.

De passage die u bedoelt, luidt: “De equity contribution op closing is geregeld in Schedule 2 (onder no 9d) van de SFA, met equity vervreemdingsconsequenties in clausule 11.4.”

In Schedule 2, onderdeel 9d is geregeld dat de investor en/of de managers 45% van de totale acquisitiefinanciering hebben ingebracht in [Z] BV. In clausule 11.4 is de change of control geregeld. Ik heb enkele nadere vragen over de betekenis van deze clausules en de begrippen in de Senior Facility Agreement en de Intercreditor Agreement.

Een belangrijk aspect van de change of control is de zeggenschap en het aandeel in het geplaatste aandelenkapitaal van [Y] BV (de parent). In artikel 1.2 Construction van de Senior Facility Agreement is over share en share capital opgemerkt: “(a) Unless a contrary indication appears, any reference in this Agreement to: (...) (xi) “shares” or “share capital” includes equivalent ownership interests and “shareholder” and similar expressions shall be construed accordingly (...)’

Vraag:

In bovenvermeld derdenonderzoek genoemde schedule 2, paragraaf 9, aanhef en onderdeel d, betreft een bijlage bij de Senior Facilities Agreement (Execution Version) van 27 januari 2011 tussen [Z] en het syndicaat van banken (ook genoemd SFA). Genoemd onderdeel luidt als volgt (waarbij [Z] is aangeduid als ‘the Company’):

“9. Other documents and evidence

(…)

( d) Confirmation that the Company has received or will receive cash investor and/or Management proceeds no less than 45 per cent, of the total funding in relation to the Acquisition.“

“38. The corporate structure chosen by [A FONDS] is fairly common in private equity deals. It is the corporate structure that, given the activities and geographic location of the assets of [de X-groep] , [A FONDS] and its advisors considered the most efficient one with a view to facilitating cash repatriation. In more detail:

Lening aan [E] GmbH

Correcties aangifte Vpb 2011/2012

Belastbare winst volgens aangifte € 9.196.469

Geen renteaftrek convertibles € 8.034.514

Lening u/g [E] € 1.000.000

Belastbare winst na correcties € 18.230.983

Af: te verrekenen verliezen 2010/2011 € 15.738.000 -/-

Belastbaar bedrag € 2.492.983

FECS Bonus (2010/2011)

“

(…)

Exit means a Listing, a Sale resulting in a Change of Control, or an Asset Sale.

Exit Date means the date on which the Exit is completed, being the actual date of transfer of the shares (or assets, in case of an Asset Sale).

(…)

The FECS Bonus is calculated in respect of each relevant Participant in accordance with the following formula:

FECS Bonus (LTM EBITDA * Factor -/- Threshold + Cash flow) * FECS Percentage

provided that:

In het Private Placement Memorandum (PPM) als vermeld in onderdeel 2 van de uitspraak van de rechtbank is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“ [A FONDS]€ 5.000.000.000Limited Partnership InterestsTHIS CONFIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM (THE “MEMORANDUM”) HAS BEEN PREPARED SOLELY FOR (…) PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS CONSIDERING THE PURCHASE OF LIMITED PARTNERSHIP INTERESTS (THE “INTERESTS”) IN [A FONDS] , AN ENGLISH LIMITED PARTNERSHIP (THE “PARTNERSHIP”). ANY PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS CONSIDERING THE PURCHASE OF THE INTERESTS SHOULD ALSO CONSIDER THE PURCHASE OF SHARES IN THE FONDS COMMUNS DE PLACEMENT À RISQUES ASSOCIATED TO THE PARTNERSHIP (THE “FCPR”). (THE PARTNERSHIP, THE FCPR AND RELATED INVESTMENT ENTITIES ARE COLLECTIVELY REFERRED TO AS “FUND”). (…) I. Executive Summary[A] (…) is one of the oldest and longest-established private equity firms (…).[A] is forming [A FONDS] (the “Partnership” and collectively with its related investment entities, the “Fund”) to continue to execute the Firm’s proven and highly successful buyout investment strategy.II. Executive Summary of Key Terms(…)Committed Capital € 5 billion target(…)Minimum Commitment € 10 million, subject to the discretion of the General Partner to accept Commitments for lesser amountsCommitment Period A period expiring five years from the final closing.(…)VIII. Summary of Principal Terms(…)Investment Strategy The Partnership is being organised with a view to realising substantial long-term capital gains from direct equity investments primarily in corporate acquisitions and leveraged buyouts. The Partnership will focus on business either located or with significant business activities in Europe.(…)The Management Company The management company of the FCPR will be [A FONDS Beheerder] S.A.S., a company incorporated in France (…).The General Partner The general partner of the Partnership will be [A FONDS General Partner] Limited , a company incorporated in Guernsey (the “General Partner”), which will manage the Partnership’s affairs with sole responsibility for investment management decisions and administration.Committed Capital The Fund is seeking commitments aggregating €5 billion (the “Commitments”).

(…)Commitment Period Commitments may be drawn down to make investments at any time up to the fifth anniversary of the later of the Final Closing Date and the Commencement Date (the “Commitment Period”). Thereafter, all Limited Partners will be released from further obligation to fund their respective Commitments not previously drawn down or committed by the Partnership for investment. (…)Drawdowns Commitments will be drawn down pro rata on an as-needed base to complete investments or to provide for the Annual Share and expenses (…).(…) Limited Partners admitted to the Partnership subsequent to the initial Closing will participate in all of the Partnership’s portfolio investments.(…)Transfers and Withdrawals Limited Partners may not transfer, assign, sell or pledge their interests, except for transfers realised by a Limited Partner to another entity within its own group, without the written consent of the General Partner, which may be granted or withheld in the sole discretion of the General Partner. (…)X. Certain Investment ConsiderationsAn investment in the Fund involves a significant degree of risk. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s rate of return objectives will be realised or that there will be any return of funded Commitments.(…)XI. Structural, Tax & Regulatory MattersStructureThe Fund will be structured as one or more limited partnerships (or any similar vehicles if appropriate) which will invest in parallel. Alongside these limited partnerships, FCPR(s) with substantially the same commercial terms as the partnerships will be established in which investors in the partnerships will also commit. Investments will either be made through the partnerships or the FCPR(s). (…)The Partnership (and parallel limited partnerships) have been established as English limited partnerships with [A VK General Partner] Limited as their general partner (…). [A VK General Partner] Limited will be substituted for [A FONDS General Partner] Limited as the General Partner. (…)

XII. Report of Statutory Auditors(…)Statutory auditor’s certificate(…)May 31 2007”

In een overeenkomst van 5 juni 2007 is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“PARTIES(1) [A FONDS oprichter 1] LIMITED (…)(2) [A FONDS oprichter 2] LP (…)INTRODUCTION(A) The General Partner and the Limited Partner have agreed to form a limited partnership under the name of “ [A FONDS] ”, (the “Partnership”).

(…)(E) Further subscriptions to the Partnership are being sought from other investors at which time more detailed rules of the Partnership will be adopted and, on adherence to the terms of the Partnership, such investors shall become additional limited partners in the Partnership.(F) The Partnership shall carry on the business of an investor and, in particular, of identifying, negotiating, making, monitoring and realising investments and all functions and acts.(…)4 Management of the Partnership4.1 The Partnership and its assets shall be managed by the General Partner (…).4.2. Subject to clause 4.1, the General Partner shall have full power and authority, on behalf of and so as to bind the Partnership and the Partners as such, to enter into, make and perform such deeds, documents, contracts, agreements, undertakings, guarantees and indemnities as the General Partner may consider necessary or desirable in the furtherance of the Partnership’s business.(…)6 Transfers6.1 The General Partner may at any time transfer its interest in the Partnership to any person (…).6.2. The Limited Partner may at any time transfer its interest in the Partnership to any person (…).”

Tot de gedingstukken behoort een (blanco) “ [A FONDS] Deed of Adherence” waarin onder meer het volgende is vermeld:

“ [A FONDS]NOTES FOR COMPLETION OF DEED OF ADHERENCE1 Do not date the Deed of Adherence. (…) By returning, the Deed of Adherence Investors will authorise [A FONDS General Partner] Limited , its agents or legal advisors, to date the Deed of Adherence on their behalf.(…)Deed of Adherence for Investors wishing to become Limited PartnersTo: [A FONDS General Partner] Limited (General Partner) APPLICANT DETAILS1 The Applicant hereby irrevocably applies to become a limited partner in [A FONDS] __ (the “Partnership”) (…), on the terms of the Partnership Agreement dated 5 June 2007 (…).(…)3 If there are Parallel Funds to the Partnership, this Deed may, at the discretion of the General Partner, be treated as the Applicant’s application to participate in such Parallel Fund provided that such partnership has the same structure and a substantially similar partnership agreement as the Partnership and the General Partner will notify the Applicant of the limited partnership of which the Applicant becomes a member.(…)16 The Applicant hereby declares, represents and warrants that:

(a) it has the financial ability to bear the economic risk of its investment, has adequate means for providing for its current needs and possible contingencies and has no need for liquidity with respect to its investment in a Commitment in the Partnership;(…)

(e) it is aware that an investment in the Partnership involves substantial risks and has determined that a Commitment is a suitable investment for it and that, at this time, the Applicant could bear a complete loss of its investment therein; (…)(g) it understands that under the Partnership Agreement, Limited Partners cannot withdraw from the Partnership and Commitments cannot be transferred, except as provided in the Partnership Agreement, and, consequently, it acknowledges and it is aware that it may have to bear the economic risk of investment in the Partnership until such time as the Partnership is terminated in accordance with the Partnership Agreement, which could be as late as 13 yearsfrom acceptance of this application;”

“NOTES FOR COMPLETION OF SUBSCRIPTION AGREEMENT (…)4 Do not date the Subscription Agreement. The By-Laws may be amended at or prior to the admission of Investors. In this event, prospective Investors will be provided with the latest draft prior to acceptance of their Subscription Agreement. By returning the Subscription Agreement, Investors will authorise [A FONDS Beheerder] , its agents or legal advisors, to date the Subscription Agreement on their behalf.5 The name of the FCPR in which the Investor subscribes will depend on the status of the Investor. By returning the Subscription Agreement, the Investor will authorise [A FONDS Beheerder] , its agents or legal advisors, to complete the name of the FCPR on its behalf.(…)THE UNDERSIGNED AGREES AS FOLLOWS1. SubscriptionThe investor hereby subscribes to the FCPR (…).2. Subscription to Parallel FundsIf there are Parallel Funds to the FCPR, this Subscription Agreement may, at the discretion of the Management Company, be treated as the investor’s application to participate in such Parallel Fund provided that such Parallel Fund has the same structure and a substantially similar by-laws as the FCPR and the Management Company will notify the Investor of the name of the fund of which the Investor becomes an investor.3. CommitmentThe Investor hereby irrevocably undertakes to make a total investment in the FCPR of: € (…)”

In een persbericht van (naar het Hof begrijpt) [A FONDS Beheerder] S.A.S. van 6 mei 2008 is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“Final closing of [A FONDS] at €5,4 billion ($8.5 billion)[A FONDS Beheerder] (“ [A] ”) today announces the final closing of [A FONDS] at €5.4 billion (…).[A FONDS] doubled in size compared to its predecessor fund raised only three years ago. The fund received commitments from around 130 investors from 23 different countries (…).[A FONDS] will continue [A] ’s proven and highly successful strategy of acquiring market-leading business in Europe within the sectors it covers and target transactions ranging from €500 million to several billion euros in enterprise value.

[A FONDS] will be deployed by a team of around 50 professionals led by 18 partners who have worked together at [A] for an average of 11 years. (…).”

In de statuten van [A FONDS-1] FCPR (“Revised By-Laws dated 17 July 2007, amended on 8 September 2008, 13 July 2009 and 18 January 2010’) is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“1. DEFINITIONS(…)“Commitments” the total amount that an Investor commits to invest in the FCPR as specified in the Subscription Agreement or Transfer Agreement of that Investor (…).“Fund Entities” any [A FONDS] limited partnerships and fonds commun de placement à risques established under agreements containing substantially similar commercial terms to these By-Laws (…)“Investment” an investment (…) acquired by the FCPR (either directly or indirectly) (…);“Investment Policy” the investment policy of the FCPR as defined in the Information Memorandum as “Investment Strategy” (…) hereby attached as Schedule 1; (…)“Management Company” [A FONDS Beheerder] SAS, the management company of the FCPR;(…) “Parallel Funds” the FCPR and the Partnership and any additional limited partnerships and fonds commun the placement à risques established (…);“Partnership” [A FONDS] , a limited partnership managed by the General Partner; (…)3 SUBSCRIPTION OF INVESTORS(…)Equalisation between Parallel Funds(…)3.4. It is acknowledged that the FCPR may receive amounts from and pay amounts to the Parallel Funds pursuant to the co-investment agreement to be entered into by the FCPR and the Parallel Funds so as to equalise the cash position of investors in the FCPR and in the Parallel Funds (…). Amounts received by the FCPR from any Parallel Fund should be distributed to Previous Investors if applicable pro rata to their respective Commitments drawdown as soon as practicable after receipt. (…).(…)5. FURTHER DRAWDOWNSInvestors(…)5.3 The Management Company shall notify the General Partner of any drawdown under the FCPR and the General Partner shall notify the Management Company of any drawdown under the Partnership. Any amounts drawn down by the Partnership from Investors (…) shall correspondingly reduce the Total Undrawn Commitments of the Investors hereunder, so that the total amount paid-in by an Investor (…) to both the FCPR and the Partnership shall never exceed the Investor’s Commitments (…).

(…)Schedule 1Investment PolicyPage 44 of the Information MemorandumSection VIII: Summary of Principal TermsInvestment Strategy The Fund is being organised with a view to realising substantial long- term capital gains from direct equity investments primarily in corporate acquisitions and leveraged buyouts. The Fund will focus on business either located or with significant business activities in Europe i.e. investments will not exceed 10% of the Total Commitment subject to Article 7.1(d) of the By-Laws.”

In de statuten van [A FONDS] limited partnership (voorheen [A FONDS] limited partnership) van 18 januari 2010 is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“Amended and Restated Limited Partnership Agreement relating to [A FONDS] (amending and restating a limited partnership agreement dated 5 June 2007, as amended and restated om 10 July 2007, 2 August 2007, 17 September 2008, 13 July 2009 and 18 January 2010)(…)INTRODUCTION

(…)(D) On 10 July 2007 UK GP resigned as general partner and assigned its interest in the Partnership to the General Partner.(…)(F) The General Partner as the managing partner will be solely responsible for the management and operation of the Partnership.(G) The General Partner may receive applications for Commitments to or alongside the Partnership from prospective investors who will, upon acceptance by the General Partner of a Deed of Adherence signed and delivered by such prospective investors, become Limited Partners and be treated as parties to this Agreement.(…)OPERATIVE PROVISIONS1 Definitions and interpretation(…)Commitment in relation to an investor, the amount committed by it to the Partnership (and accepted by the General Partner in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement) (…).Drawdown the first drawdown and/or a Further Drawdown requesting the Investor to pay a drawdown pursuant to clause 5.1(…)FCPR [A FONDS] FCPR(…) General Partner [A FONDS] General Partner (…)Information

Memorandum the information memorandum dated 14 June 2007 relating to the placing of Commitments, as amended and supplemented from time to time on or before the Final Closing Date(…)

Investment(s) an investment or investment acquired by the Partnership (either directly or indirectly) including but not limited to shares, debentures, convertible loan stock (…) and loans (…) made to any body corporate or other entity (…)Investment Advisers [A FONDS Beheerder] S.A.S. (…) as investment adviser to the Partnership and any Affiliate of [A FONDS Beheerder] S.A.S..(…)Investor [A FONDS oprichter 2] LP (…) and any person who becomes a Limited Partner by signing a Deed of Adherence (…)Limited Partner the Founder Partner and any person who is admitted to the Partnership as a limited partner by signing a Deed of Adherence (…)Parallel Funds [A FONDS] and the FCPR (…) established under agreements containing substantially similar commercial terms to this Agreement (…) and formed pursuant to the provisions of the Information Memorandum which invest in parallel with the Partnership

(…)Partnership [A FONDS] being the limited partnership established on 5 June 2007 by an agreement dated 5 June 2007 (…)Total Commitments the aggregate amount of all of the Commitments of the Investors(…)FCPR Investment the total amount advanced to FCPR by its shareholders (…)(…)3 Admission of further PartnersFurther Partners3.1 Subject to clause 3.7, further persons may be admitted as Limited Partners by the General Partner at any time up to and including the Final Closing Date provided that they each sign and deliver to the General Partner a Deed of Adherence, and for so long as total commitments of the Partnership and the Parallel Funds which co-invest alongside the Partnership (…) are less than or equal to €6 billion or such amount as agreed by the General Partner and by an Investors 2/3 Consent. (…)(…)6 Operation and management of the Partnership(…)Authority and powers of the General Partner6.3. The General Partner shall have full power and authority, on behalf of the Partnership (…).The Investment Advisers6.6 The General Partner shall appoint [A FONDS Beheerder] S.A.S. (…) as the Investment Advisers (…).6.7 The General Partner shall have sole responsibility for its own decision making but shall be entitled to act or rely upon the opinion or advice of or any information obtained from the Investment Advisers.(…)7 Investor protections provisions

Investment restrictions 7.1 The Partnership will comply with the following investment restrictions and investment procedures. The Partnership along with the FCPR may not without the prior 60 per cent consent (by number) of the Advisory Committee:(a) invest (…) an amount in excess of 15 per cent of Total Commitments in the securities of any single Portfolio Company and its Affiliates (…).(b) invest (…) an amount in excess of 25 per cent of Total Commitments in the securities of any single Portfolio Company and its Affiliates (…).(…)Borrowing restrictions(…)7.3 The aggregate amount from time to time of any Partnership together with the FCPR borrowings and any guarantees given by the Partnership together with the FCPR (…) shall not exceed the lesser of (i) 15 per cent of Total Commitments, and (ii) Total Undrawn Loan Commitments.Investment Opportunities7.4 The General Partner hereby agrees that, until the end of the Commitment Period or, if earlier, the date the Partnership terminates or ceases to make New Investments, it shall procure that all new buyout investment opportunities received by the General Partner or its Affiliates in European Investments which the General Partner reasonably determines fall within the Investment Policy will first be offered to the Partnership (and any Parallel Fund), (…).(…)20 Advisory CommitteeMembership20.1 The Partnership shall have an Advisory Committee comprising at least five members who shall each be selected from Investors in the Partnership and Parallel Funds.(…)Previous agreements25.20. This Agreement supersedes and replaces the agreement dated 10 July 2007 between [A FONDS General Partner] Limited and [A FONDS oprichter 2] L.P. which amended and restated the agreement dated 5 June 2007 between [A FONDS oprichter 1] Limited and [A FONDS oprichter 2] L.P. The Partnership is continuous with the partnership established by the said agreement of 5 June 2007 as amended and restated on 10 July 2007, 2 August 2007, 17, September 2008, 13 July 2009 and 18 January 2010.”

In het tot de gedingstukken behorende – deels geanonimiseerde – memo “Project Swan Initial strawman tax structure paper”, gedateerd 17 november 2010, van PwC (M&A Tax Services ), is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“Executive Summary (1/3)General

 This report sets out the envisaged structure for the acquisition of the [de X-groep] group by funds managed and advised by [A FONDS Beheerder] (“Transaction”).

(…)Outline of Transaction

 The funds managed and advised by [A FONDS Beheerder] are considering the acquisition of 100% of the shares in [X] BV (the “Target”) from its current shareholder [D 1] BV.

(…)Outline of proposed acquisition structure(…)

 Two Dutch BV’s will be incorporated for the Transaction (i.e. BV1 and BV2).

 BV1 will be incorporated by Coop to facilitate security to the lending banks (i.e. through a pledge on shares in BV2) and to create structural subordination between the bank debt and the shareholder debt.

 BV2, incorporated by BV1, will be the acquisition vehicle for the Transaction. In this capacity BV2 will be funded with bank debt, shareholder debt and equity from BV1.

(…)

Step 5: Acquisition of [X] BV (1/2)

(…) Steps

 BV2 acquires the shares in [X] BV from Vendors for €[262,5]m (+ €[10,5]m transaction costs) in cash consideration.

 Dutch Coop, BV 1, BV 2, [X] BV, [de X-groep] BV and [de X-groep] BV form a Dutch CIT fiscal unity as from the date of acquisition.

 Management enters/rolls over into the Dutch Coop.”

In de notificatie aan de Europese Commissie van 16 december 2010, als aangehaald in de uitspraak van de rechtbank onder 20, is voorts onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“1. The proposed concentration consists of the acquisition by private equity company [A FONDS Beheerder] S.A.S. (“[A]”), through the investment funds it manages and advises, of sole control over [X] B.V. (“[de X-groep]” and, together with [A] , the “Parties”), a Dutch-based company active in the retail sale of different types of women’s underwear (the “Transaction”). [de X-groep] is currently owned by [D 1] B.V. (“[D]”). Pursuant to the legally binding Signing Protocol (the “Agreement”), entered into on November 22, 2010, [D] agreed to sell, and [F] S.A.R.L. (“ [F] ”) – a company which is wholly owned by funds managed and advised by [A] – agreed to acquire, 100% of the issued share capital of [de X-groep] .

2. Before closing, [F] will transfer its rights and obligations to a newly incorporated Dutch limited liability company, [Z] B.V. (“[Z]”), which will therefore ultimately acquire 100% of [de X-groep] shares. [Z] will be fully owned by another newly created Dutch limited liability company, [Y] B.V. (“[Y]”), which, in turn will be fully owned by a newly created Dutch cooperative [rechtsvoorganger X] . (“[rechtsvoorganger X]”). The share capital of [rechtsvoorganger X] will be initially entirely owned by the investment funds managed and advised by [A] , which will therefore indirectly hold 100% of the equity and voting rights of [Z] .”

Volgens de jaarrekening 2011 van [A FONDS-1] FCPR bedraagt het balanstotaal van haar per 31 december 2011 € 365.002.974,73. De activa bestaan voor € 41.270.012,86 uit een belang in [X] B.V. (inclusief de door [rechtsvoorganger X] uitgegeven convertible instruments); de passiva voor € 363.430.137,02 uit ‘partner’s capital’ en voor € 1.572.837,71 uit ‘other liabilities’. Ter zake van de convertible instruments zijn in de jaarrekening van [A FONDS-1] FCPR geen rente-inkomsten verantwoord. In de toelichting van deze jaarrekening is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“INVESTMENT IN [de X-groep] IN JANUARY 2001On 22 November 2010, [A] signed an agreement with [D] to acquire 100% of its lingerie division, [X] B.V. [de X-groep] is a vertically integrated lingerie retailer with a very strong number one positon in the Benelux (16% market share in the Netherlands and 8% in Belgium). It is also the largest lingerie specialist in Germany and has a more limited presence in a number of other countries (…). Headquartered in [plaatsnaam] , the Netherlands, the company has an international network of nearly 500 stores.The transaction closed on 31 January 2011 with [A FONDS] investing € 140 million in [de X-groep] .(…)

10. Securities(…) Holding Type of Security (…) [de X-groep] [rechtsvoorganger X] Membership A Membership B Convertible Instrument Interest-free Conv. Loan Note (…)”

Tot de gedingstukken behoort een rapport van PwC van 7 mei 2012, met als titel “ [rechtsvoorganger X] debt service capacity and interest rate analyses on the inter-company loan provided to [rechtsvoorganger X] ”. In dit rapport is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“Glossary of terms and abbreviations(…)DealScan Reuter’s LoanConnector DealScan databaseDSC Debt service capacity SHLs, or the Tested The shareholder loans, i.e. three notes issued by [rechtsvoorganger X] to [A FONDS] ,Transactions at completion, i.e. 31 January 2011(…) 1. Executive summary1.1. Purpose and scopeThe purpose of this report is to assess the impact of the SHLs on the forecasted consolidated cash flow position of [rechtsvoorganger X] and to substantiate the arm’s length interest rate applied on the interest-bearing SHLs.(…)The scope of this report is limited to assess the impact of the Tested Transactions on the forecasted consolidated cash flow position of [rechtsvoorganger X] and to review the arm’s length nature of the interest rate applied on the Tested Transactions (…). This report does not evaluate the arm’s length nature of the terms and conditions of the loan (other than the interest rate and the volume), or any guarantee, hedging or other agreements relating to the Tested Transactions.

The Tested Transactions On 31 January 2011, [rechtsvoorganger X] issued the following notes to [A FONDS] :

1. Convertible loan notes, with a fixed interest rate of 13.00%, a maturity of 40 years and a volume of EUR 61,365,500;2. Loan notes, with a fixed interest rate of 13.00%, a maturity of 40 years and a volume of EUR 894,000 (…); and3. Interest-free convertible loan notes, with a maturity of 9 years and a volume of EUR 5,000,000.

(…)

In een verslag van een hoorgesprek van de inspecteur met belanghebbende, bijgestaan door medewerkers van (PwC) van 5 februari 2015 is over het uitoefenen van het recht de uit hoofde van de convertible instruments bestaande schuld om te zetten in kapitaal het volgende vermeld:

“De [inspecteur] vraagt zich (…) af waarom de schuldenaar dit dan niet meteen zou doen? (…) Mag de heer [naam werknemer] [Hof: CFO belanghebbende] dit recht uitoefenen? De heer [naam werknemer] geeft aan dat hij dat recht niet hoeft uit te oefenen. En PwC geeft aan dat een onderneming keuzevrijheid heeft hoe hij zijn onderneming financiert.De heer [naam werknemer] geeft aan dat hij de noodzaak niet ziet om tot omzetting van de ‘convertible instruments’ over te gaan. Zolang er op het vreemd vermogen maar een rendement wordt gehaald dat hoger is dan de vergoeding die aan de vreemd vermogen verschaffers moet worden betaald, is de coöperatie tevreden.

In het verweerschrift van de inspecteur in eerste aanleg is onder meer het volgende over de convertible instruments vermeld:

“3.8.3. (…) Over het laatste jaar (jaar 40) bedraagt de rentelast € 938,9 miljoen. Over de gehele looptijd genomen heeft de lening ad € 61,4 miljoen een rentelast van € 8.099.623.617 (ca. 8,1 miljard euro). De oorspronkelijke hoofdsom is dan (…) minder dan 1% van de totale schuld.(…)

In zijn verweerschrift in hoger beroep heeft de inspecteur over de rente die [E] GmbH (hierna: [E] ) in 2010/2011 aan belanghebbende verschuldigd is nog het volgende opgemerkt:

“[B]elanghebbende [is] de lening u/g van € 25 miljoen aan [ [E] ] tot 26 juni 2011 schuldig gebleven. (…). De rentelast bedraagt in 2011 circa € 937.000 (€ 25 miljoen x 9% x 5 maanden).”

In een brief van gemachtigde aan het Hof van 5 december 2018 is onder meer het volgende vermeld:

“1 INFORMATION MEMORANDUMDesgevraagd heeft [A FONDS Beheerder] S.A.S. ons bevestigd dat het Information Memorandum hetzelfde document betreft als het Private Placement Memorandum (…).”