King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) is pleased to have acted as lead deal and documentation counsel on PrimeCredit Limited's (PrimeCredit) inaugural term securitisation issuance. The transaction is the first public term personal loan-backed securities issuance in the Hong Kong SAR* market and the first public term securitisation in the Hong Kong SAR market for over a decade.
The transaction raised US$200 million to finance PrimeCredit's growing personal loan book in Hong Kong SAR, through the issuance of AAA-rated notes by Ocean Funding 2019-1, which will be listed on the Singapore Exchange and issued to a range of international investors. The transaction used a dual-currency structure and provided revolving funding flexibility to PrimeCredit within a public issuance framework.
The KWM team was led by Partner Anne-Marie Neagle and included Partners Richard Mazzochi and Paul McBride, Senior Associate Matt Kaminsky and Solicitors Ben Wighton, Evangeline Chee and Millie Burnett. As a leading global firm headquartered in Asia, the KWM team was uniquely placed to support the successful launch of this transaction by being able to combine deep regional securitisation expertise with leading Hong Kong SAR regulatory, industry and business knowledge.
Commenting on this ground-breaking transaction, Anne-Marie said "We are thrilled to have had the opportunity to support the further growth of PrimeCredit's business through this new funding platform, and we congratulate the PrimeCredit team on a successful and market leading issuance. In addition to its successful outcomes for PrimeCredit, this transaction has the potential to open new regional opportunities for originators and investors alike, and we look forward to seeing how the foundations laid by this transaction support the further development of Hong Kong SAR, and broader Asian, securitisation markets."
*Any reference to Hong Kong or Hong Kong SAR shall be construed as a reference to "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China"
