China Banking Corporation (PSE: CHIB) successfully raised PhP30 billion as investors gobbled up its maiden issue of peso fixed rate bonds. The bonds were listed on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDEx) on July 10, 2019.
We are very grateful for the overwhelming market response which reflects our clients’ confidence in China Bank’s fundamental strength and future prospects,‖ said China Bank President William C. Whang, noting that the issue was six times oversubscribed.
China Bank upsized the amount to PhP30 billion from the initial target of PhP5 billion to accommodate strong investor demand. This is one of the largest corporate bond issuances on a single issuance in the market to-date—a testament to the Bank’s placement capabilities, solid client support and strong distribution reach.
The success of a bond issue of this size in accessing the capital markets — following the successful two rounds of LTNCD that we issued in the previous years – is likewise a testament to the institutional strength of China Bank, as reflected in the investment grade credit rating given to China Bank in 2017 and recently affirmed by Moody’s‖, Whang added.
The China Bank bonds, due January 2021, carry an annual interest rate of 5.70%, which will be paid monthly.
This bond issue forms part of the Bank’s planned PhP75-billion fund raising program for the next three years to support its expansion and strategic initiatives. The Bank is also looking at following this with the issuance of up to PhP20 billion worth of peso-denominated Long Term Negotiable Certificates of Time Deposits (LTNCD) in the fourth quarter of the year, subject to BSP approval and favorable market conditions.
Last year, China Bank raised PhP10.25 billion via LTNCD.
