Fiona Le Poidevin, CEO at The International Stock Exchange Group (TISEG), explains how a recent landmark listing is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of new business coming from Asia to The International Stock Exchange (TISE), which is headquartered in Guernsey.

Only last month TISE played a role in a ground breaking Asian property deal when the Exchange became home to US$4.1 billion worth of bonds which were listed as part of the financing for the world’s most expensive real estate transaction for a single building to date.

The bonds were issued by CHMT Peaceful Development Asia Property Limited to finance the acquisition of Hong Kong’s fifth largest skyscraper, The Center. The bonds were listed on TISE in two tranches, of approximately US$3.3 billion Tranche A notes and US$800 million Tranche B notes, with an 18 month maturity.

Law firm Walkers acted as listing sponsor and adviser to CHMT Peaceful Development Asia Property Limited, working with their counterparts at Ashurst in Hong Kong.

“Listed as part of the financing for the world’s most expensive real estate transaction for a single building to date.”

It is hugely pleasing that TISE was chosen as the listing venue for such a significant and notable bond issuance. This provides yet further evidence that issuers and their advisers are increasingly viewing TISE as the exchange of choice for listing specialist debt securities and especially where there is an international dimension. This is one of a number of Chinese-origin issuances we have seen coming to TISE recently and I am excited about the potential to grow this pipeline of business from Asia.

The number of Asian-related listings coming to TISE has grown noticeably in recent months and follows a period of sustained growth following from the listing of three series of notes by China Cinda Finance Finance (2014) II Limited in 2015. At the time, these notes represented the first securities to be listed by an issuer with an ultimate parent company domiciled in China, which is China Cinda Asset Management Company.

The offices of Mourant in Hong Kong (and Guernsey) worked with their counterparts at King & Wood Mallesons and Davis Polk & Wardell LLP to complete the transaction.

“These notes represented the first securities to be listed by an issuer with an ultimate parent company domiciled in China.”

What we are seeing is that Asian-origin corporates are increasingly raising finance from international markets either to reinvest back into the region or to finance acquisitions globally and where a listing is required as part of these transactions then TISE is now among the stock exchanges to which issuers and their advisers turn.

Our position as a regulated marketplace offering proportionate admissions criteria and cost-effective listings means that we are receiving growing recognition in Asia and this is something we will be looking to capitalise on through 2018 and into 2019 as we expand our brand visibility internationally.