Floats bond issue, which opens this Friday December 2

Durrant Pate/Contributor

Jamaican investment and brokerage company, Mayberry is seeking to raise upwards of J$7 billion on the local money market through a secured bond issue.

The bond issue, which will be executed in four tranches, opens this Friday, December 2, and closes on January 6, 2023.  Mayberry is seeking to raise an initial amount of J$5 billion with the option to up-size the amount to J$7 billion.

The minimum investment is J$20,000 with additional increments in multiples of J$10,000. The bonds will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. In the event of oversubscription, Mayberry has reserved the right (after up-sizing) to allocate the secured bonds on a pro rata or other basis as it deems fit.

In any tranche of the bond issue, Mayberry reserves the right to take up less than J$1.25 billion in any of the four tranches. The company will make an application to the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) for the bonds to be admitted to trading on its Bond Market.

If the application is successful, it is anticipated that the bonds will be admitted to trading within 21 days of the closing date of the bond issue. Mayberry intends to use the proceeds to expand its portfolio of securities loans and for general corporate purposes.

Interest payments

Interest will be calculated and accrued from day to day (after as well as before any judgment) but prorated on the basis of a 360-day year and paid quarterly on each interest payment date. The first interest payment date will be on March 30, 2023.

Thereafter, interest will accrue on from June 30, September 30, December 30 and March 30 each year. Interest payments to Jamaican resident bondholders will be subject to tax at 25 per cent.

Such interest will be withheld by the registrar and paying agent and paid to the relevant tax authority. Bondholders that are resident outside of Jamaica may be subject to higher or lower rates of tax on interest and principal depending on their circumstances.

Opportune time to issue secured bonds

Commenting on the impending bond issue, Mayberry Executive Chairman Christopher Berry said: “The last six months have seen extremely volatile securities markets. In such times, having exposure to fixed rate secured debt that matches the investor’s need for funds can provide a valuable cushion to ride out the inevitable dips in equities.”

As such, Berry declares that, “Mayberry believes that now is the opportune time to issue the Secured Bonds and for retail investors to consider rebalancing their portfolios to get exposure to publicly tradeable fixed rate debt instruments”.