Statistics from The International Stock Exchange ("TISE") tell the story of a successful six months in which the exchange has responded well to challenging market conditions - there were more new listings on TISE during the first half of 2020 than in the same period of any other prior year since the business was established in 1998, and a rise of more than 60% on the same time in 2019.
More important for listings agents and issuers is that the exchange is being used in new ways as its growth earns it recognition and credibility in new markets. One of those developments has been of particular interest in our Channel Islands and Dublin offices – (with a combined headcount of almost 250 people) – where we have managed to work together on a new system for listing securitisation deals for European clients (particularly those from Ireland) using TISE.
The securitizations involve large pools of cash-generating assets transferred to a special purpose vehicle which pays for the assets by issuing interest-bearing securities in the form of bonds or notes. These have the benefit of security over those assets and/or the cash flows generated by them. We also continue to see an uptick in synthetic deals, particularly in the significant risk transfer space, choosing TISE as the listing venue for the issuers' credit linked notes (CLNs).
The cash flows generated are used to pay interest and repay principal on the securities, which are listed on TISE. There are various selling points for this approach - TISE achieves a technical listing for quoted Eurobond purposes and falls outside the scope of EU Market Abuse Regulation and Transparency Directive. It is also worth noting that the listing document itself will not be published on TISE's website.
Walkers Capital Markets Limited has provided guidance and helped to successfully list several bonds issued by securitization vehicles on TISE, for issuers incorporated under the laws of Ireland, Luxembourg and England and Wales. WCML also advises on the Euronext, Cayman, Vienna and Bermuda exchanges.
Beyond securitisation, TISE has grown its share of UK Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) to more than a third of the market and has become the leading European listing venue for high yield bonds.
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