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April, 2008 |
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Canada Housing Trust Issues Two Bonds for $11 Billion
 Merrill Lynch last week played an integral role in helping the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) navigate difficult markets and break the record books with a two-tranche bond issue for C$11 billion (U.S. $11 billion).
The deal, on which the issuer chose Merrill Lynch for the first time to be one of its joint coordinators, was not only the biggest ever Canadian dollar offering, but by far the largest global debt issue to date this year.
Canada Housing Trust, the issuing entity of the CMHC bond program, entered the market after a brief window of opportunity opened on Wednesday, March 19, after the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut.
It issued a C$2 billion three-year reopening of its existing 4.05 percent March 2011 and a new C$9 billion 5.25 percent June 2013.
The issuer’s AAA rating and direct guarantee from the Government of Canada attracted a strong flight to quality bid worldwide, with sizeable demand coming from Asian investors.
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