First Reit prices S$100m of guaranteed bonds due 2027 at 3.25%
FIRST Reit 's trustee, Perpetual (Asia), has priced S$100 million of guaranteed healthcare social bonds due in 2027 at 3.25 per cent, the manager of the real estate investment trust (Reit) said on Friday (Apr 1).
The 5-year guaranteed bonds are part of the Reit's Social Finance Framework, which aims to issue bonds and loans that have specific social benefit outcomes and meet sustainability goals. They also represent Singapore's first-ever healthcare social bond, the manager said.
Victor Tan, chief executive of First Reit's manager, said the bonds open up a new channel of financing and enhance the Reit's presence in the regional capital markets.
"With the launch of the Social Finance Framework and the bonds, we are able to bring about a critical alignment of the trust's social mission and sustainability strategy with its funding strategy," Tan said. The Social Finance Framework was launched in March 2022.
The bonds are expected to be issued on or around Apr 7, and are payable semi-annually in arrears.
Net proceeds from the issue will be used to refinance the issuer's existing term loan maturing in May 2022, while any excess amount will be used in the manner agreed with the bonds' guarantor.
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The bonds, rated "AA" by S&P Global Ratings, are guaranteed by Credit Guarantee and Investment Facility (CGIF), which has a paid-in capital of US$1.1 billion as at Mar 1 and is a trust fund of the Asian Development Bank.
CGIF provides credit guarantees for local currency denominated bonds issued in the Asean+3 region - which comprises Asean countries, China, Japan and South Korea.
It aims to help corporations in the region expand and diversify debt funding sources, while gaining access to new bond markets and broader investor groups, First Reit's manager said.
The Singapore branches of CIMB and ING, as well as OCBC, are the joint social bond structuring advisers and joint lead managers for the issue of the bonds.
Units of First Reit ended Thursday S$0.005 or 1.6 per cent higher at S$0.31.
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