Tag: coupon

Quabit Issues 4-Year Bonds Amounting to €20M

29 March 2019 – Valencia Plaza

The property developer Quabit Inmobiliaria has issued bonds amounting to €20 million through its wholly owned subsidiary Quabit Finance. The bonds have a maturity of 4 years and a coupon of 8.25%, which will be paid annually.

The success of the placement represents a great boost to the company’s strategy and confirms investors’ confidence in its management capacity. The funds raised will be used to undertake new investments, finance new projects and whereby continue with the firm’s growth and expansion plan.

Original story: Valencia Plaza

Translation/Summary: Carmel Drake

Grupo Ortiz Completes 5-Year Bond Issue Worth €50M

10 July 2018 – Eje Prime

Grupo Ortiz has finalised the placement of bonds worth €50 million with the aim of replacing a previous issue that is due to expire next year. Thanks to this operation, the company will reduce the cost of its debt and extend its maturity period.

The new bonds, subscribed by qualifying investors, are being launched over five years, in such a way that they will expire in 2023. The interest rate on the bonds is 5.25%. The new securities replace those issued for the same total amount in 2014, which are due to expire in 2019 and which generate a cost of the company of 7% per annum.

The new bonds, just like their predecessors, will be admitted for trading on the Alternative Fixed Income Market (MARF). Grupo Ortiz was the third company to launch debt securities on that market.

In 2017, Grupo Ortiz completed a portfolio of building work pending execution worth €6 billion, up by 45% compared to the previous year, boosted by the expansion of its international business, primarily in Latin America. More than two-thirds of the company’s business is generated overseas.

Original story: Eje Prime 

Translation: Carmel Drake

Bankia, BBVA & Abanca At War with Sareb for “Breach of Contract”

30 January 2018 – El Independiente

Bankia, BBVA and Abanca are at war with Sareb. The three entities are not willing to sacrifice their own results just because the bonds issued by the ‘bad bank’, which they received as payment for the real estate assets that they transferred to it, are now generating a negative return when, according to the conditions established, the coupon should not have been allowed to fall below 0%.

The conflict is in the middle of an arbitration process to determine whether the banks will be forced to accept that Sareb has decided to change the price of those bonds, explain sources familiar with the negotiations, speaking to El Independiente. The affected entities accuse “Sareb of a breach of contract”.

Sareb was created to take on 200,000 financial and real estate assets from the banks in exchange for which it issued €50.781 billion in 1-, 2- and 3-year bonds, which are renewed each time they mature. The interest rate on those bonds comprises two variable components: the 3-month euribor rate – which is currently trading at -0.32% – and the Treasury interest rate over the term in question. On the secondary market, that interest rate currently amounts to -0.43%, -0.21% and 0.03% for one, two and three years, respectively.

Of the €50.781 billion issued, Bankia granted the company assets worth €22.317 billion, Catalunya Bank – now absorbed by BBVA – contributed €6.708 billion and Novagalicia – which now belongs to the Venezuelan group Abanca – just over €5.0 billion.

Officially, the bonds were issued with a coupon that included a floor clause to prevent the interest rate from being negative depending on the conditions in the market. That floor had its own raison d’etre: so that the securities could be used by the entities to approach the ECB to request liquidity, given that, until last year, the bonds had to trade with positive coupons in order to be discounted by the central bank.

Nevertheless, a regulatory change in the middle of 2017 means that the banks can now use this debt as collateral even when those coupons are negative. This argument is enabling Sareb to refuse to maintain the floor clause that kept the coupons at 0%. And Bankia, BBVA and Abanca are not willing to assume that cost.

An executive familiar with the conflict explains it like this: “Sareb agreed that,  in exchange for the real estate assets that the banks transferred to it at the end of 2012, it would pay them a specific amount, not in cash but in bonds. Now it says that it is going to pay less and so, naturally, the banks need to defend their interests and those of their shareholders”.

Of the more than €50 billion in Sareb bonds issued to pay for the 200,000 real estate assets – 80% in loans and credits to property developers and 20% in properties – which nine entities transferred to it, the outstanding balance now amounts to €37.9 billion. In this way, the company has repaid almost €13 billion. Moreover, it has also paid interest on that debt of almost €2.8 billion.

Original story: El Independiente (by Ana Antón and Pablo García)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Haya Real Estate Issues €475M In Guaranteed Bonds

10 November 2017 – Expansión

Debt market debut / The real estate and financial asset manager Haya Real Estate is reconfiguring its liabilities with its first bond issue

The real estate and financial asset manager Haya Real Estate, owned by the private equity fund Cerberus, has debuted on the debt market by placing €475 million in guaranteed senior bonds.

The operation has been divided into two tranches. The first, amounting to €250 million, has been placed at a fixed rate of 5.25% and the second (amounting to €225 million), has been placed at a variable rate, linked to three-month Euribor +5,125%. The floating coupon has a zero clause for Euribor in such a way that negative interest is not computed. Currently, three-year Euribor is at minimum levels of -0.32%. The firm guarantees the payment of these issues with shares in the company itself and its service contracts.

Haya Real Estate has been assigned a B- rating by S&P and a B3 rating by Moody’s, which means it is considered high yield. Market sources maintain that demand for the issue was equivalent to more than twice the amount awarded in the end. The strong investor appetite has allowed Haya Real Estate to increase the amount of the issue, given that initially, it was planning to raise €450 million. To bring the issue to a successful conclusion, the firm engaged the services of Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Bankia and Santander.

Haya Real Estate will use the funds to repay a syndicated loan, to distribute a dividend to Cerberus, to hold onto cash and to pay the commissions and fees associated with the issue. In addition, it will return money that Cerberus lent it to acquire Liberbank’s real estate asset manager, for which it paid €85 million.

“Cerberus lent us the money until we were able to close the bond issue because the syndicated loan terms were more restrictive”, explained Bárbara Zubiría, Financial Director at the company.

Original story: Expansión (by Andrés Stumpf)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Merlin Raises Issues 12-Year Bonds Worth €300M

12 September 2017 – Expansión

Merlin Properties has returned to the capital market, taking the Socimi‘s visits so far this year to two. Yesterday, it managed to raise €300 million from the issue of 12-year bonds, in an operation for which it offered a coupon of 2.375%

To effectively manage the placement, Merlin engaged the services of Morgan Stanley. The issuance received robust demand, which allowed the firm to reduce the cost from 150 basis points above mid-swap (the reference rate for the placement of fixed income bonds in euros) considered initially, to 140 basis points above mid-swap.

This is the fifth issue that Merlin Properties has undertaken since its constitution. The first three, for a cumulative sum of €2,350 million, were carried out in 2016. This year, the Socimi has already raised €900 million.

According to the company, the funds raised will be used to early repay its mortgage debt, as well as for “general corporate purposes”. Merlin is the fourth non-financial company to resort to the debt market after Telefónica, Iberdrola and Cortefiel.

Original story: Expansión (by A. Stumpf)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Mazabi Prepares To Debut Its Socimi On Stock Market In 2018

12 June 2017 – Expansión

The family property management firm Mazabi is preparing to debut its Socimi – Silicius Inmuebles en Rentabilidad – on the stock market. It plans to list it on the stock exchange at some point next year, with a target valuation of €400 million.

The multifamily office, which was created in 2009 and which currently manages assets worth more than €1,000 million in 14 countries, wants its Socimi to be constituted as an ideal investment vehicle for families interested in obtaining returns from their assets and improving liquidity, as well as for institutional investors interested in obtaining a coupon from their investments.

Silicius was incorporated in 2015 and was registered under the Socimi framework last year. The company, promoted by El Arverjal – a family office owned by the Mencos family – and managed by Mazabi, will debut on the stock market before September 2018.

Currently, Silicius owns assets worth €90 million and generates revenues of around €5 million. It is finalising additional financing amounting to between €20 million and €30 million so that it can undertake new investments before the summer. In parallel, the group is negotiating the contribution to its fund of assets from other partners and the incorporation of investors who will contribute capital depending on the opportunities that are generated.

Incorporation

“The objective is to debut on the stock market with a value of between €200 million and €250 million next year and, once listed, incorporate an individual or institutional shareholder with a placement on the stock market to try and reach the target market capitalisation of €400 million”, explained the CEO of Mazabi, Juan Antonio Gutiérrez.

The Director said that the Socimi’s average debt will be in the order of 25%: “The objective is to pay a coupon and, for that, the level of debt has to be low”.

The company focuses its investments on assets worth between €5 million and €30 million and is currently analysing purchase opportunities amounting to €100 million. “We focus on the segment that private investors can’t afford, but which fall below the level of interest of the funds and large Socimis, which is where there are more opportunities and less competition”, explained Juan Díaz de Bustamente, CEO of the Socimi.

Currently, the firm’s portfolio includes a hotel in Conil (Cádiz), two office buildings in Madrid – one on Calle Obenque and another on Calle Virgen de los Peligros – and four retail assets – including a store leased to Cortefiel on Paseo de la Castellana, 18 (pictured above) and another set of premises leased to Vips on Calle Velázquez 136. It also owns a stake in Lazora.

The company is not going to limit its acquisitions to Spain and will analyse opportunities in the main European capitals. “Our investments have to fulfil three principles: diversification, liquidity and coupon”, they state. Specifically, the company is currently evaluating the possibility of completing an acquisition in Portugal.

The Directors explain that it would be reasonable for 20% of its assets to be located outside of Spain. “You lose the tax effect, but it allows you to diversify geographically”, they add.

Original story: Expansión (by Rebeca Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Merlin Issues Debt Amounting To €600M, Redeemable In 2025

18 May 2017 – Expansión

Debt issues in Spain, which have been the focus of the financial sector in recent times, have now reached Merlin Properties. The Socimi has placed debt amounting to €600 million, with a term of eight years (maturing in May 2025) at a price of 99.417% of the nominal value and with an annual coupon of 1.75% (125 basis points above midswap). The subscription and disbursement of the issue will take place on 26 May 2017.

Merlin has received requests amounting to €1,200 million for the issue, i.e. double the amount that will be awarded. This level of demand has allowed it to lower the cost of the operation.

Initially, the Socimi proposed a price of 135 basis points above the reference index for fixed income or midswap issues. But, the strength of demand reduced that premium to 125 points.

To carry out the operation, Merlin has engaged the services of Crédit Agricole, Nabca IMI, Goldman Sachs, ING and JPMorgan.

At the Socimi’s General Shareholders’ Meeting three weeks ago, the CEO, Ismael Clemente (pictured above), confirmed plans to resort to the debt markets, although at the time he was unsure as to whether it would do so through convertible debt or senior debt issues, or by refinancing the bank debt.

The last few weeks have reinforced the truce in the debt market in Europe, after Emmanuel Macron secured victory over Marine Le Pen in the French elections.

Original story: Expansión

Translation: Carmel Drake

Sabadell Places €1,000M In 10-Year Mortgage Bonds

20 April 2017 – Expansión

It has taken Sabadell just four months to debut on the debt market this year. Yesterday, it completed the placement of €1,000 million in mortgage bonds with a maturity of 10 years, to leave Popular as the only entity that, given the uncertainty surrounding its specific situation, has not resorted to the capital markets to raise finance or secure resources for its capital buffer.

For these bonds, Sabadell is offering a coupon of 1%, in other words, 33 basis points above the mid-swap rate, the reference rate for issuances of fixed income securities in euros. The mortgage bonds are the safest debt that an entity can issue, given that, in Spain, they are guaranteed by all of the mortgage loans of the issuing bank, which serve as collateral in the event of bankruptcy. There has never been a default of this kind in Spain.

To carry out the operation, Sabadell has received help from Barclays, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole, Lloyds and Natixis, as well as from its own investment banking team. Demand for the bond issue amounted to €2,400 million, in other words, more than twice the amount awarded.

Santander Totta

Meanwhile, Santander Totta, the Portuguese subsidiary of Santander, launched an order yesterday to place 7- and 10-year mortgage bonds. According to sources in the market, the operation will close tomorrow and will serve to raise cheap financing. Besides Santander, the following entities are participating in that operation: Unicredit, Deutsche Bank and Société Générale.

Original story: Expansión (by A. Stumpf)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Colonial Completes €600M 8-Year Bond Issue

24 October 2016 – Expansión

The real estate company Colonial has completed a bond issue amounting to €600 million with a maturity of eight years and an annual coupon of 1.45%, according to a statement made by the group to the CNMV.

The company will allocate some of the amount raised from this operation to the repayment of bonds issued in May amounting to €750 million; they have a maturity of four years and an annual coupon of 1.863%.

The subscription and payment of the latest issue will likely take place on 28 October. For this operation, Colonial has engaged Deutsche Bank – London Branch, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole, JPMorgan, Mediobanca, Merrill Lynch and Natixis.

The company’s return to the debt market comes just days after it announced the acquisition of a stake in Axiare. Specifically, Colonial purchased 15.1% of the Socimi for €135.6 million.

Original story: Expansión (by R.Arroyo)

Translation: Carmel Drake

CaixaBank Places €1,500M 7-Year Mortgage Bond Issue

2 February 2016 – Cinco Días

The bank chaired by Isidro Fainé…has placed a 7-year mortgage bond issue amounting to €1,500 million. The entity has been helped by Barclays, Goldman Sachs, Société Générale and UBS.

CaixaBank has placed the debt issue at a price of 78 basis points above the 7-year midswap rate (the risk free interest rate corresponding to that term), slightly below the reference rate of 80 basis points sought at the beginning of the placement. The coupon has therefore been left untouched at 1%.

Demand for the issue has amounted to more than €2,500 million, with more than 125 investors expressing interest in it, of which a significant number were foreigners. This has allowed the entity to reduce the price of the issue. CaixaBank’s last debt issue, which was placed on 4 November 2015, amounted to €1,000 million. It had a five-year term and a coupon of 0.625%. The entity is strengthening its surplus liquidity, which amounted to more than €54,000 million at the end of last year.

Spanish banks are rushing to raise funds on the capital markets. In January, BBVA placed a 5-year senior debt issue amounting to €1,000 million; meanwhile, Bankia placed mortgage debt amounting to €1,000 million; Santander issued 10-year bonds for the same value; and Deutsche Bank issued bonds amounting to €500 million with a 7-year term.

Santander achieved a price of 65 basis points over the midswap rate – the reference index for this kind of debt issue – on its placement. It will pay a coupon of 1.5%. Mediobanca, Natixis and Nomura accompanied the Santander group in the management of the operation.

Javier González, Head of Debt Issues by Financial Entities at BNP Paribas, which participated in the placements of BBVA, Bankia and the Treasury, confirmed that the money invested in these operations has been coming from end investors, such as investment and pension funds.

Banco Santander and Bankia have chosen to issue mortgage bonds because the volatile environment makes this type of asset very popular with conservative investors.

Original story: Cinco Días (by Pablo Martín Simón)

Translation: Carmel Drake