Whats the difference between a syndicate of banks and a consortium of banks and its impact on the borrower?

A consortium is a co-operation between two banks. The banks team up to give a loan none of the banks would be able (or want) to issue on there own.





A syndicate is a special type of consortium. The banks have teamed up to give one loan.





To be short, every syndicate is a consortium, but not every consortium is a syndicate. Usually the term consortium is not used when it's in fact a syndicate.





When it comes to loans, the big difference (in my opinion) is when the lender cannot repay. With a consortium the lender can repay one bank and fail on another. With a syndicate there is only one loan, the lender will have to fail on the whole loan (which might have other legal consequences).