CardinalStone Partners Limited, a full-service investment banking firm and financial services company, has listed the N5 billion it raised as the first tranche of its N10 billion bond issuance programme on FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited.
The bond which will be due in 2025 is a 5-Year 7% Fixed Rate Senior Unsecured Bond.
Commenting on the Bond Issue, the Managing Director of CardinalStone Partners Limited, Michael Nzewi noted that “the full subscription level recorded demonstrates investors’ confidence in CardinalStone and the ability of our management team to create value. This longer tenor debt capital injection will enable the Company to execute the next phase of its mid-to-long-term growth strategy.”
He further said by successfully raising the N5 billion financing, CardinalStone is better positioned to sustain its impressive growth in the coming years.
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On her part, Onyebuchim Obiyemi, CardinalStone’s Head of Investment Banking, stated: “We are excited about the successful listing of the CardinalStone Financing SPV N5 billion Series I Bond on the FMDQ Exchange and that the registration and listing process was swift and straightforward, which is a testament to the efficiency at FMDQ. This listing is a major accomplishment for the firm and reiterates the Company’s resolve to continuously deliver value to all its stakeholders.”
What this means
CardinalStone’s bond raising and listing is a demonstration of investors’ confidence in the company. However, amongst other things, this will help CardinalStone bridge the capital shortfall occasioned by the raging COVID-19 pandemic.
The bond will also help the company maintain and sustain its capacity to protect jobs, and makeup for the setback caused by the infectious disease. CardinalStone is considering the listing of the Bond on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX). Chapel Hill Denham Advisory Partners Limited acted as the Lead Issuing House/Book Runner for the N5 billion bond.
FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited, FCMB Capital Markets Limited and FSDH Capital Limited, all played key roles in the bond raising and listing, as they acted as Joint Issuing Houses and Book Runners.
In Context
- CardinalStone in March 2021 announced the closure of its $64 million West African SME Fund; the fund is a generalist fund that makes equity investments of $5 million–$10 million in high-growth SMEs operating across a range of sectors including industrials, agribusiness, consumer goods and services, education, healthcare, and financial services.
- Commercial and development finance institutions including Kuramo Capital, the UK Government’s CDC Group, FMO – the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank, the International Finance Corporation, the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and high-net-worth individuals invested in the CardinalStone West African Equity Fund.
CardinalStone was founded in 2008. In addition to investment banking, CardinalStone also offers securities trading, asset management, registrar services and consumer finance via its subsidiaries namely CardinalStone Securities Limited, CardinalStone Asset Management Limited, CardinalStone Registrars Limited and CS Advance Finance Company Limited respectively.
