PPCBank splits bond issuance, listing on April 21

PPCBank splits bond issuance, listing on April 21

South Korean-owned Phnom Penh Commercial Bank (PPCBank) has decided to split the issuance of its 80 billion riel corporate bonds ($19.7 million) into 2 phases due to the Covid-19 development.

The listing of the bonds on Cambodia Securities Exchange will take place on April 21, said the bank in a statement after obtaining the approval on the subscription and allocation of its corporate bonds from the Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia (SECC) today.

The second phase of the bond would be issued over the next six months or so.

The bonds, which have a three-year tenure and a final coupon rate of 6.5 per cent, joins Advanced Bank of Asia Ltd (ABA) on the CSX board as the second commercial bank corporate bond issuer.

Bonds have also been issued by microfinance institutions Hattha Kaksekar Ltd and LOLC (Cambodia) Plc.

“At a time of high uncertainty and market volatility where securing liquidity is more important than ever, we are now one of the few financial institutions in Cambodia with access to the newest source of long-term funding,” said PPCBank chief executive officer Shin Chang Moo.

The issuance of the bonds, initially scheduled for earlier this year and pushed to now, would add not only flexibility but also stability in terms of funding for the medium and long term.

Yuanta Securities (Cambodia) Plc managing director KT Han said the bank showed strong commitment to fulfilling its promise with investors and gaining the regulator, SECC’s trust despite the unexpected developments throughout the process.

“[This includes] the global outbreak of Covid-19 and the announcement of the new prakas on tax incentives for listed companies,” Han added.

Yuanta Securities is the lead manager for the bond issuance.

“We believe it is an excellent start for the bank as securing liquidity would be one of the top priorities for banks in the coming months.

“We plan to carry out the second phase by carefully following the Covid-19 development,” Han said.

The bank will hold the listing event with limited number of participants, in line with the government’s instructions on Covid-19. Phnom Penh Pos