Accountants and business advisors Beever and Struthers provided key advice on a major bond issue that raised £150m to provide 500 new homes, with a further £100m retained for later sale.
The bond oversubscription of five times at final pricing is thought to be one of the highest seen for a public housing association bond in the past five years.
The Manchester-based firm acted for its client, Karbon Homes, an independent registered provider of affordable homes based in North-East England, on raising the £150m through the bonds market. This is the third major bond issue the firm has acted upon in the past 12 months.
As reporting accountant, Beever and Struthers was responsible for key roles including the review of financial information in the bond prospectus issued to over 40 potential investors, of which 23 were involved at the close of the deal, verifying the information contained within the document and confirming the financial position of the organisation.
The £150m raised will be vital in Karbon’s delivery of its “Strong Foundations Strategy”, which includes expanding the registered provider’s new-build programme to include the delivery of at least 500 new homes a year, along with the continued investment in its almost 30,000 homes across the North-East and Yorkshire.
The bond issue also involved Karbon’s advisors JC Rathbone Associates and Savills Advisory Services, funders Lloyds Bank and NatWest, and legal advice from Addleshaw Goddard, Trowers & Hamlins and Eversheds Sutherland.
John Jones, partner and head of corporate advisory at Beever and Struthers, said: “We are one of the leading providers of specialist financial advisory services to registered providers and other not-for-profit organisations nationwide and were delighted to assist Karbon with this tremendously successful fundraising.”
Mark Reid, executive director of resources at Karbon Homes, said: “Beever and Struthers were great to work with, providing sound and professional advice, whilst ensuring the project ran smoothly throughout.”
