By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC) has promised to use proceeds from the N11 billion 13.80 percent series 2 bond to refinance eligible mortgage loans originated by the participating mortgage lending banks.
A statement issued by NMRC said the N11 billion bond issuance under its N440 billion medium term note programme was largely subscribed to by domestic investors by more than 200 percent, with the Pension Fund Administrators representing over 70 percent of the investors.
The bonds were priced at a spread of about 74 basis points above the interpolated 15-year FGN yield of 13.06 percent as of the opening of book building.
The series 2 bonds were unconditionally and irrevocably guaranteed by the Federal Government of Nigeria and thus ascribed an ‘AAA’ rating by both Global Credit Rating Co. and Agusto & Co.
According to NMRC, the raising of the bond is part of its primary mandate of providing liquidity to the Nigerian mortgage market.
“This is coming on the heels of its inaugural N8 billion 14.9 percent series 1 bond issue in July 2015, which was fully deployed towards refinancing legacy mortgage loan portfolios of the participating eligible member-mortgage lending banks,” the statement said.
“The bond issuance reinforces our commitment to encourage and promote homeownership in Nigeria by linking the capital markets with the housing sector, and establishing an operating and viable secondary mortgage market to support the primary mortgage market,” Managing Director of NMRC, Mr Kehinde Ogundimu, was quoted as saying in the statement.
Chairman, Dunn Loren Merrifield Advisory Partners, Mr Sonnie Ayere, stated that the high subscription level for the series 2 bonds was indicative of the strong investor appetite for the long-tenured asset class and underscored the confidence reposed in the underlying principle and operating model of the NMRC.
He noted that the Nigerian mortgage market would witness a significant boost as the mortgage pre-financing facility, Mortgage Warehouse Funding Limited, began its operations.
“The MWFL is sponsored by the NMRC, member mortgage banks, Mortgage Bankers Association of Nigeria, Lion’s Head of Global Partners through the African Local Currency Bond Fund and the DLM Group,” he added.
