Wells Fargo has completed its buyout of GE Capital's North American commercial lending and leasing businesses. The deal was first announced in October 2015. Now that the combination is official, some partners wondering if or how it will potentially impact leasing and lending deal flow in North America.
Under terms of the deal, Wells Fargo gains the following businesses: GE Capital’s Global Commercial Distribution Finance (CDF), Vendor Finance and Corporate Finance platforms -- representing approximately $27 billion in assets so far. Another piece of the buyout, the CDF business outside North America, is expected to be completed later this year.
In private notes to ChannelE2E, some partners have wondered if the deal will potentially:
- Reduce capital and liquidity to the channel; and
- increase the risk to partners, since so much lending now involves a single lender.
Generally speaking, I suspect it's business as usual for the finance groups under Wells Fargo's ownership. But readers are asking some important questions. And ChannelE2E is checking in with Wells Fargo and GE Capital for thoughts on the company's channel partner commitments. We're also double-checking to see which of the major IT vendors leverage GE Capital for their respective financing programs to partners.
Among the key considerations to keep in mind: If a solution provider had a 2015 line of credit from Wells Fargo for $500,000 and from GE $500,000, will the new Wells Fargo give that same service provider a $1 million dollar? "I doubt it," says Greg VanDeWalker, senior VP and GM at GreatAmerica Financial Services, which works closely with channel partners.
We're checking. Stay tuned for updates.
