ACS Finance plc, which serves as a financing vehicle for the Malta-based Audentia Group, has announced its intention to issue a bond issue comprising of €29 million worth of secured bonds, with a nominal value of €100 each.

Audentia Group is one of the largest Malta-based regulated investment management platforms for funds, operating across multiple European jurisdictions including Malta, Luxembourg and Spain. Its principal activity is the management of alternative assets via investment funds.

These bonds will carry an annual interest rate of 5.5 per cent, payable semi-annually (30 April and 31 October each year) from the Issue Date until maturity, according to the prospectus. At maturity, investors will receive the nominal value of the bonds together with any accrued and unpaid interest, ACS Finance said on its website.

The maturity date is listed as 31st October 2034.

The bonds have been granted a preliminary investment grade rating of BBB by EthiFinance.

The prospectus states that an application has been made to the Malta Stock Exchange for the Bonds to be listed and traded on the Official List.

The ACS Finance website links the bonds to a Barcelona metro line.

“In 2008, a public authority in Catalonia, Spain, awarded a long-term concession for the construction and operation of a metro line in Barcelona, with a term running until 2041. The line was completed in 2012 and opened to the public in 2016. The operation of the metro line and the maintenance of the stations were structured separately and subcontracted to leading sector operators. Since 2011, payments have flowed reliably and uninterruptedly from the public authority to the relevant concession companies.”

“In 2023, the Audentia Group acquired, through a securitisation transaction, 36% of the economic rights linked to the ordinary maintenance of 13 stations. The Issuer now intends to acquire these credit rights directly using the proceeds of this €29 million bond issue. The economic rights expected to be generated until 2041, currently estimated at approximately €88 million, will be pledged in favour of the Security Trustee as security for the repayment of the Bonds.”