Baker & McKenzie recently advised Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Cheung Kong Bond Securities (02) Limited (“CKBS”) on the issue and offering by CKBS of HK$1 billion 5.25% guaranteed senior perpetual securities, which are denominated in Hong Kong dollars. The securities are guaranteed by Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited and are listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
The securities are perpetuals with no fixed redemption date. The coupon rate will be stepped up by 1% after five years and the securities carry coupon deferral features. DBS Bank Ltd. acted as the sole lead manager and bookrunner.
The Baker & McKenzie team was led by Finance partner Andrew Lockhart, assisted by associate Christopher Shen, as well as on corporate issues by Corporate partner Milton Cheng, assisted by special counsel Edwin Li.
Commenting on the transaction, Milton Cheng who heads the Firm’s Asia Pacific M&A Practice said, “We are delighted to have had the opportunity to assist Cheung Kong, a long-standing client of the Firm, with this interesting and ground-breaking transaction. The successful completion of the issue is a good sign of investors’ confidence in Cheung Kong.”
Andrew Lockhart who chairs the Firm’s Asia Pacific Banking & Finance Practice further added, “This is the first Hong Kong dollar-denominated corporate perpetual issued in Hong Kong. It will be interesting to see if this will lead to more of these types of securities deals by Asian companies seeking to raise financing.”
