(Finance) – National Agency for the attraction of investments and business development – Invitalia has successfully launched an unsubordinated and unsecured bond loan of 350 million euros and the duration of 3 years, intended exclusively for institutional and professional investors (the “Notes”) and qualified as a “social bond”. The issue will in fact take place in compliance with the Social Bond Principles published by the International Capital Market Association.
In conjunction with the issue of the Notes, Invitalia has also adopted a Social Bond Framework, available on its website, complying with the aforementioned principles as confirmed by the Second Party Opinion of DNV Business Assurance Italy. In this context, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking acted as Sole ESG Structuring Advisor.
The Notes have been placed at a issue price equal to 99.884% of their nominal value and will pay an annual coupon equal to 5.25%. The issue and settlement of the Notes is expected to take place on November 14, 2022, subject to the signing of the related contractual documentation and the satisfaction of the usual conditions at closing.
Application has been made for the Notes to be admitted to listing and trading on the regulated market of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and it is expected that the issue will be assigned a rating of “Baa3” by Moody’s.
The placement aroused great interest from institutional and representative investors from numerous geographical areas, with a significant participation of ESG investors, recording final requests for an amount exceeding Euro 470 million. The subscription was successful in European countries.
The corporate purpose of the Agency and the purposes that permeate its activities, provided for by the specific regulation on the basis of which it operates from time to time, are consistent with the Social Bond Principles: Invitalia is institutionally and statutorily engaged in the social sector as a manager of facilitation measures and incentives for business support, the development of female entrepreneurship e
youth, to the management of complex areas of industrial crisis. These activities can lead to the Agency itself being defined as a “social agent”.
It is expected that an amount equivalent to the proceeds deriving from the issue of the Notes will be used to repay the loan granted in July 2022 to Invitalia by some of the Joint Bookrunners and to finance or refinance, in whole or in part, new or pre-existing projects. that have positive social results and have the requirements set out in the Agency’s Social Bond Framework, i.e. to finance the structural costs of managing the orders entrusted by the Italian government and / or public administrations, thus pursuing purposes of social interest.
Goldman Sachs International and Santander Corporate & Investment Banking acted as Joint Global Coordinators as well as Joint Bookrunners together with Banca Akros SpA – Banco BPM Group.