Affinity Sutton raises £250M on bond market
Affinity Sutton raises £250m
bond
Affinity Sutton has announced its return to the bond
market with the launch of a £250m 30 year fixed rate secured bond
with a coupon of 4.25%.
The deal which is rated Aa2 by Moody’s Investor Service marks
the return of the 56,000 home social landlord to the bond market
after four years and is the lowest price ever in the sector.
The proceeds will be used towards the delivery of 3,000 homes
under the 2011-2015 Homes and Communities Agency Affordable Homes
programme.
The degree of investor appetite for the transaction reflects the
financial strength and high credit rating of Affinity Sutton. There
were over 40 separate investors in the order book which reached
£1.1bn, including a number of new names to the sector.
The deal was jointly arranged by RBC Capital Markets, Barclays
Bank and Lloyds Banking Group.
Mark Washer, Group Finance Director at Affinity Sutton said
“This is a fantastic result for Affinity Sutton. Our strong
surpluses and reserves are essential elements of our strong
financial profile and clearly demonstrate that we are attractive to
investors. With government grant funding for new affordable
homes down to an average of just 12% strong surpluses and increased
levels of the capital debt markets are essential to securing our
financial future."