DBRS Assigns Provisional Rating of AA (high) to OPB Finance Trust’s Series E Debentures

DBRS Limited (DBRS) has today assigned a provisional rating of AA (high) to the proposed Series E Debentures (the Debentures) to be issued by OPB Finance Trust (the Trust). The trend on the rating is Stable. The Trust is a wholly owned subsidiary and principle financing vehicle of the Ontario Pension Board (OPB or the Fund).

The rating reflects the unconditional and irrevocable guarantee of OPB on the Debentures. The Debentures are the direct and unsecured obligations of the Trust and rank pari passu with the other present and future unsecured and unsubordinated obligations of the Trust. Net proceeds from the issuance will be used to originate loans to members of the OPB Group to repay a portion of the funding that was made available for recent real estate acquisitions.

To DBRS’s knowledge, no material adverse developments have occurred in OPB’s operations or financial position since DBRS’s most recent rating review in October 2015. Debt is expected to remain well below OPB’s internal debt policy, which limits total debt (including both recourse and non-recourse) to 10% of the market value of the Fund.

Notes:
All figures are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.

The related regulatory disclosures pursuant to the National Instrument 25-101 Designated Rating Organizations are hereby incorporated by reference and can be found by clicking on the link to the right under Related Research or by contacting us at info@dbrs.com.

This rating is endorsed by DBRS Ratings Limited for use in the European Union.

The applicable methodologies are Rating Canadian Public Pension Funds & Related Exclusive Asset Managers and DBRS Criteria: Guarantees and Other Forms of Explicit Support, which can be found on our website under Methodologies.

For more information on this credit or on this industry, visit www.dbrs.com or contact us at info@dbrs.com.