Olswang's expanding real estate practice has received a boost after securing a major role on a £1bn financing for Propinvest.

The deal saw Olswang advising the property developer on a major refinancing, which involved Barclays Capital repackaging debt facilities by Allied Irish Bank, Nationwide, GMAC and Bayerische LandesBank. The package also provided initial funds for the acquisition of six new properties for Propinvest, which are due to be refinanced through securitisation.

Olswang fielded a team under banking partner Eleni Skordaki and real estate partner Philip Olmer. The firm also co-ordinated a team of other law firms in England, Scotland, Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man to complete the deal in four weeks.

The deal is significant for Olswang, which has invested heavily in its property department in a bid to diversify its practice away from its core corporate media business. Its other property clients include Prestbury, Land Securities Trillium and Woolworths.

Olswang, which has previously handled a number of acquisitions for Propinvest, was handed the job after the company sounded out several regular advisers.

Skordaki told Legal Week: "The deal was complex not just because we had to create a bespoke product but because of the really tight timeframe. The legal technologies in terms of the tax and debt structures used, for example, have not been used on this scale before."

Barclays Capital, meanwhile, instructed the London arm of Sidley Austin, with the US firm fielding a team under partner Mark Menhennet.