Brussels, 9 December 2016 – Euronext today welcomed the listing of Cofinimmo’s new Green and Social bonds through a simplified private placement procedure on Alternext in Brussels. Cofinimmo is hereby the first European Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) to issue Green and Social Bonds as well as the first Belgian company to opt for this type of financing1.
The Cofinimmo Green and Social bonds have been subscribed for a total amount of € 55 million, with an 8-year maturity and a fixed coupon of 2.00 %. The bonds, which are dedicated to (re)finance projects positively contributing to sustainable development, were placed with institutional investors by the bank syndicate composed of Belfius, BNP Paribas and Degroof Petercam.
The proceeds of the operation will be used to (re)finance buildings which were recently delivered or renovated, or which are currently being redeveloped: on the one hand, projects with an environmental goal, i.e. office buildings with an environmental and sustainable BREEAM or BREEAM In-Use certification (Very Good at least) and, on the other hand, projects with social goals, i.e. healthcare assets used for the accommodation of vulnerable or dependent people in need of special care (geriatrics, psychiatry or care of disabled people, for example).
Jérôme Descamps, CFO of Cofinimmo: “This transaction enables us to further diversify our sources of financing, to optimize our cost of debt and to extend the average maturity of our debt. But most importantly, it rewards Cofinimmo’s Corporate Social Responsibility strategy and recognizes the efforts undertaken by its teams to improve the long-term environmental and social footprint of its portfolio. The success of this private placement will encourage us to consider other similar operations in the future.”
Euronext, which joined the UN Sustainable Stock Exchange Initiative in 2015 and partners with Vigeo, is committed to promote – through dialogue with investors, companies and regulators – sustainable and long-term investment and enhanced corporate transparency on Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance issues. The Euronext Green Bond offering enables capital-raising and investment for new and existing projects with environmental benefits. In 2016, €6.05 billion have already been raised through 11 green bond issues on the Euronext markets (+ 40% compared to 2015).
To celebrate the new listing, Jean-Edouard Carbonnelle, CEO of Cofinimmo, and Jérôme Descamps, CFO of Cofinimmo, rang the Euronext bell to open trading.
1According to the ICMA Green Bond Principles (GBP), updated as of June 2016 www.icmagroup.org
About Cofinimmo
Founded in 1983, Cofinimmo is today the foremost listed Belgian real estate company specialising in rental property and an important player in the European market. The company owns a diversified property portfolio spread over Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Germany, worth over 3.3 billion EUR, representing a total surface area of nearly 1,800,000 m². Riding on demographic trends, its main investment segments are healthcare properties (44 %), offices (39 %) and distribution networks (16 %). As an independent company that consistently applies the highest corporate governance and sustainability standards, Cofinimmo services its tenants and manages its properties through its team of over 110 people, operating from Brussels. Cofinimmo is listed on Euronext Brussels (BEL20) and benefits from the fiscal REIT regime in Belgium (RREC), in France (SIIC) and in the Netherlands (FBI). Its activities are controlled by the Financial Services and Markets Authority, the Belgian regulator. At 30.09.2016, its total market capitalisation stands at 2.3 billion EUR. The company pursues investment policies which seek to offer a high dividend yield and capital protection over the long term, targeting both institutional and private investors.