ICTSI readies bond offer

Port operator International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) is set to raise $100 million through its second bond offering in a month as it prepares for more acquisitions this year.

The bond offering, which will be consolidated into a single series with the $300 million in notes the company sold earlier this month, will be part of ICTSI’s $750-million medium-term note program.

Global investors swamped the notes sale, with demand reaching $1.5 billion, which means the notes were 15 times oversubscribed, said Lauro Baja, managing director of UBS Philippines, one of the transaction’s managers.

The notes were priced at 4.46 percent, lower than the 4.75 percent yield on the notes sold two weeks ago. The notes were issued by ICTSI’s wholly owned subsidiary, ICTSI Treasury BV.

“This will be fungible with their existing 2013 bond. They have a note program which allows them to raise bonds quickly and opportunistically,” Baja said.

Of those that participated in pricing the notes, fund managers made up 60 percent; banks, 26 percent; private banks, 10 percent; and insurers/others, 4 percent. A total of 78 accounts participated.