Last week, Heidmar Inc. announced it entered into a definitive agreement for a business combination with Home Plate Acquisition Corporation, a publicly listed, special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The transaction values the combined company at a pro forma implied equity value of approximately $261.4 million.

Last Thursday, TORM announced that it had entered into two transactions, the first an acquisition, with a financing twist, and the second a refinancing coupled with a new commitment.

Earlier this month, DFDS successfully priced, at par, two tranches of senior unsecured bonds totaling NOK 1,500 million in total. Making the process easier, DFDS had earlier obtained an issuer and senior unsecured debt rating of BBB- (stable) from Scope.

Last week, Ocean Yield AS successfully completed a new four-year NOK 750 million senior unsecured bond issue, which represents the initial issue amount drawn from a borrowing limit of NOK 1,500 million.

Last week, Navigator Holdings (“Navigator”) pushed us closer to gender equality. The company announced that it had recently concluded a $200 million senior term loan facility for the financing of ten vessels.

Up until recently, one would have thought it would be less risky to be a banker than a shipowner. After all, provided the bankers make the correct credit decision, all that is necessary is to sit back and collect interest and principal.

Back in May of last year, International Seaways Inc. refinanced three existing credit facilities into a new senior secured credit facility of $750 million, composed of a $530 million term loan and a revolving credit facility of $220 million.

Certainly, a “near-death” experience captures one’s attention fully. In the case of Teekay, that description is not quite apt, but without a doubt the company, back in 2020, faced a mountain of debt. Their fate was determined.

Earlier this month, we reviewed Partankers XXII AS, a Pareto Securities’ organized project involving the acquisition of two 2007/2008-built Panamax/LR1 tankers which was concluded at the end of last year.

Scorpio Tankers Inc. last week announced that it has exercised the purchase options on six ships including two 2016-built LR2 product tankers (STI Grace and STI Jermyn), one 2019-built LR2 product tanker (STI Lavender), two 2019-built MR product tankers (STI Magnetic and STI Marshall), and one 2020-built MR product tanker (STI Miracle).

A few weeks ago, Genco Shipping & Trading Limited reported its financial results for the three months and twelve months ended December 31, 2022 and in that report there was a review of the company’s comprehensive value strategy.

For Navios Maritime Partners L.P., 2022 was a very good year as it reported revenue of $1.2 billion, and net income of $579.2 million suggestive that its strategy of operating a diversified fleet is working.