Property group Great Portland has taken advantage of strong demand for its bonds in the US to boost its coffers.
Having initially planned to raise $75m through a placing of bonds, Great Portland upped the amount to $200m after the original offer was more than five times over-subscribed.
The medium term unsecured US dollar notes have been fully hedged into sterling, providing Great Portland with £128m of debt financing at a sterling weighted average fixed interest rate of 4.59%.
MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
The issue consists of two tranches of bonds: $160m of 4.20% senior notes due 2019, and $40m of 4.82% senior notes due 2022.
The notes were placed with a select group of institutional investors, more than half of them being new investors in Great Portland.
The issue follows the property group's successful inaugural £160m private placing in May 2011 at a sterling weighted average fixed interest rate of 5.32%.
"This financing supports our already robust liquidity position and enhances our debt maturity profile, with no group level maturities until November 2015," said Nick Sanderson, Finance Director at Great Portland.
JH
-
‘I’ve had my heat pump for a year - have I saved money?’Ruth Emery’s air source heat pump has turned one. Has she saved on her energy bills over the past 12 months, and could the £7,500 grant be under threat in the upcoming Autumn Budget?
-
MoneyWeek news quiz: Which G7 nation has the most generous state pension?The chancellor “set the context” for the Budget on 26 November this week, and November's Premium Bonds winners were confirmed. The state pension also made headlines. How closely have you been following the news?
