FULLERTON HEALTH: Raises S$100m via bond issue ahead of S$300m IPO

Fullerton Health's services range from health screening and dental services to surgery.
Photo: Company

Fullerton Health Corporation has raised S$100 million via a bond issue ahead of its IPO, which is expected to raise another S$300 million in August.

The bond issue, rated AA by Standard & Poor's, consists of two tranches --- S$50 million due 2021 and S$50 million due 2023.

Both tranches have been guaranteed by Credit Guarantee & Investment Facility (CGIF), an Asian Development Bank (ADB) initiative to expand the sources of debt capital in China, Japan, Korea as well as ASEAN countries (ASEAN+3).

Fullerton Health is the first issuer in the healthcare sector that is tapping the SGD bond market with the support of CGIF’s credit guarantee.

The 5-year tranche was priced at a coupon rate of 2.45% while the 7-year tranche was priced at a coupon rate of 2.75%.

Both tranches were issued at an average premium of approximately 78 basis points over the prevailing Swap Offer Rate (SOR).

Fullerton Health is a leading provider of corporate healthcare solutions in the Asia Pacific region with a history that goes back half a century in Singapore. Its presence is as follows.

• Client base of more than 25,000 corporations ranging from MNCs, SMEs to government organisations
• More than 190 medical centres in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, Malaysia and Indonesia
• More than 8,000 medical facilities around the world

The issue will be the fifth SGD-denominated bonds wrapped by CGIF, which has total capital contributions of US$700 million from ASEAN+3 countries, as well as from ADB.

CGIF was formed in 2010 and aims to promote financial stability and to boost long-term investment in the ASEAN+3 region by providing guarantees on local currency denominated bonds issued by corporations in the region, in order to mitigate currency and maturity mismatches and make the region's financial system more resilient to capital flows and external shocks, which contributed to the Asian financial crisis.

CIMB and OCBC were lead managers of the bond issue.