Willemstad, Curaҫao – The Curaҫao Financial Group (cfg) announced on Tuesday, 16 December 2015, that the ANG 9 million Senior Secured Bonds that Building Depot Member Services Curaҫao B.V. (BDMS) had placed in the market has acquired great interest from the investment community. The subscriptions have totaled more than 75% of the issuance size of ANG 9 million since the Offering Memorandum was initially distributed in July 2015. cfg is the Manager of the bond issuance while SFT Bank is the Custodian, Bond Agent, Security Agent and Paying Agent.

The Bonds were made available through a private placement in denominations of ANG 100,000 and in 2 different classes that paid 7% and 8% per annum for varying maturities of 4 and 8 years. 

The majority of Bond investors are pension funds and insurance companies that fall under the supervision of the Central Bank of Curaҫao and St. Maarten while some are private investors. “As the Manager of this Bond Issuance, we are very excited to offer an alternative to traditional bank loans for companies seeking to raise capital, while providing lucrative, local investment opportunities in the Dutch Caribbean for institutional and private investors” said cfg Partner, Bharat Bhojwani.

The remaining bonds will be placed as a separate tranche in the local and regional markets during the 1st quarter of 2016.

Building Depot Member Services (BDMS) is part of the Building Depot Group of Companies in Curaҫao. The company is licensed to grant retail financing up to a maximum amount of ANG 5,000. The main business activity of Building Depot Trading B.V. is the retail sale of household goods, furniture, hardware, white goods and building materials from its megastore complex in Zeelandia.

Early on management recognized the value of being able to offer their customers easy access to consumer financing to fund purchases at the Building Depot store. As a result, BDMS was launched in 2005 and has been a positive contributor to the overall growth and success of Building Depot Group ever since. BDMS has provided financing solutions to thousands of customers of the Building Depot retail store since its inception, and therefor accounts for a significant percentage of sales of the Building Depot megastore, and is a cornerstone for the future growth of the Group. As such, BDMS intends to use the funding received through this bond issuance to finance the further growth of the company’s loan portfolio.

“We are very satisfied with the success of the bond offering thus far, which now provides us with the necessary funding required for the continued growth of BDMS and the Building Depot Group as a whole”, said Peter Luiten, CEO general affairs of BDMS. “Our goal is to run a healthy, profitable company that will also have a positive impact on Curaçao’s economy while continuing to innovate new business strategies in these challenging times for the retail industry.”

 

About cfg:

www.curacaofinancialgroup.com

The Curaҫao Financial Group offers an innovative, out-of-the-box approach for the corporate financial needs of its clients focusing on a development path towards value creation, with the results benefiting the client, its stakeholders and the community. cfg helps to secure funding in a variety of ways, such as debt financing from a bank, via partnerships or by raising capital through a private placement. cfg identifies investment opportunities and performs due diligence for institutional investors, fund managers and family offices interested in investing in the region. Boards, CEOs and CFOs can turn to cfg for advice and interim management. Banks can also engage cfg to step in and manage a turnaround for credit recovery and restructuring.