Conglomerate SM Investments Corp. (SMIC) returned to the offshore bond market with the issuance of $500 million five-year US dollar-denominated bonds amid strong investors demand.
SMIC said Thursday its largest offshore bond issuance since 2014 was 3.2-times oversubscribed with total demand reaching $1.6 billion.
The bonds were issued as the first tranche from the company’s newly-created $3 billion multi-issuer euro medium-term notes (EMTN).
The notes will be listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited.
“Our establishment of the pioneer EMTN program allows us to efficiently access funding with flexibility especially in times of volatility,” said SMIC chairman Amando Tetangco Jr., a former governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
“We believe that the positive reception of this maiden issuance is a testament to the investability of quality Philippine corporates,” Tetangco said.
The notes were priced at a yield of 5.466 percent, or 135 basis points above the US treasury benchmark.
The notes carry a coupon rate of 5.375 percent. The final spread represents a 35-basis-point tightening from initial price guidance. The five-year notes were distributed to high-quality global accounts.
The notes were distributed 87 percent to Asia and 13 percent to EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa).
About 83 percent of the notes were distributed to fund managers/asset managers, 11 percent to banks /financial institutions and 6 percent to private banks/others.
Four foreign banks—HSBC, J.P. Morgan, Standard Chartered Bank and UBS—served as joint lead managers and joint bookrunners, alongside BDO Capital Investments Corp. and China Bank Capital as joint lead managers.
SMIC said it would use the net proceeds from the EMTN issue for general corporate purposes.
SMIC has core investments in banking, real estate and retail. It also invests in growth sectors and market leaders which includes logistics, gaming and leisure, food manufacturing and natural resources.
