The Welsh Rugby Union has refinanced £18m of emergency Covid response lending it provided for the four regions in a deal involving the Welsh Government.
In October 2020 the union negotiated an £18m UK Government established Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loans Scheme (CLBILS) funding package, via NatWest Bank, alongside £2m from World Cup - which took total funding to the financially hard hit regions during the pandemic to £20m.
The finance, which was split almost equally between the four regions of the Scarlets (£5.5m,) Dragons (£4.5m) Ospreys (£5m) and Cardiff (£5m), had to refinanced after a three year period. The interest payments made to date were covered by the WRU as it sought to negotiate more favourable refinacing terms with the Welsh Government.
