Private Placement in California: Lessons from California s Mandatory Disclosure Rule Sylesh Volla Annabel Wong Benji Nguyen
Why do bank loans matter? 09/2015: Lawrence, Wisconsin Credit downgrade: AA to BB+ $4.6M = 3X annual revenue Direct loans, unusual clause Phenomenon of bank loans as alternative financing 2
Outline Definitions & Background Research Questions Data and Methodology Findings Implications Policy Recommendations 3
Deciding between Bank Loans & Public Bonds Private Placements & Direct Loans Few investors More flexibility No federal disclosure regulation Public Bonds Numerous investors More documentation Disclosure regulated federally 4
Research Questions What are the characteristics of private placements and direct loans in California? Descriptive statistics: number, volume, purpose What are the effects of private placement and direct loan provisions on municipal borrowing and investors? Is there a role for public policy to improve the market for municipalities? 5
Data Interviews Municipal borrowers, financial institutions, bond counsels, regulatory agencies, professional organizations California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission (CDIAC) issuance data Direct loan documents, part of CDIAC 6
What are the characteristics of private placements and direct loans in California? Have private placements changed over time? How do private placements differ from public offerings? What are private placements being used for? 7
Number of Issuances Have private placements changed over time? Number of Issuances: Public Offering vs. Private Placement 1633 1345 762 810 561 549 839 623 712 695 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Year Public Private 8
MEAN ISSUANCE COST How do private placements differ from public offerings? MEAN ISSUANCE COST: PUBLIC OFFERING VS. PRIVATE PLACEMENT Public Private 500000 400000 300000 369598 334973 430740 392495 412871 200000 100000 116020 122250 94062 85347 100178 0 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 YEAR 9
MEAN INTEREST RATE How do private placements differ from public offerings? 7.6 7.1 7.9 7.6 7.6 3.5 3.3 2.5 3 3.8 3.5 3.4 2.9 2.7 3.1 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Year Public Private Res Energy 10
What are private placements being used for? Purpose of Funding (2016) Sum Principal ($) Multifamily Housing 3,907,421,177 Residential Energy Conservation, Improvement 1,379,362,038 K-12 School Facility 841,561,684 Health Care Facilities 750,712,245 Public Transit 457,000,000 Power Generation/Transmission 428,119,192 Multiple Capital Improvements, Public Works 338,941,586 Hospital 280,662,000 Pollution Control 242,900,000 11
TOTAL PAR VALUE (MILLIONS) A Closer Look at Multifamily Housing 4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Multifamily Housing Total Par Value Over Time 1349.7 1474.9 1079 2347.6 3907.4 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 YEAR 12
Average Par Value (millions) A Closer Look at Multifamily Housing Average Par Value: Multifamily Housing vs. All Private Placements 21.4 17.7 13.7 10.5 15.2 9.1 12 7 4.7 6.2 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Year Multi Total 13
Number of Issuances A Closer Look at Residential Energy Private Placement 1035 1231 Purpose Count % Residential Energy Conservation, Improvement 3419 60.31% Multifamily Housing 628 11.08% K-12 School Facility 455 8.03% 547 288 257 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Year Multiple Capital Improvements, Public Works Water Supply, Storage, Distribution 178 3.14% 92 1.62% 14
A Closer Look at Residential Energy: WRCOG -Western Riverside Council of Governments -JPA representing 17 cities in Riverside County -Partnered with bond issuer to start a green energy program throughout state in 2013-2014 15
Remedies on Default Direct Loan Analysis 41 Direct Loan Documents in CDIAC (2012-2016) Structure of Each Loan Document Events of Default Financial Covenants Miscellaneous Provisions 16
More Frequent to Less Frequent Events of Default Rating Downgrade (3/41) Material Adverse Change (10/27) Declaration of bankruptcy or insolvency by the Borrower (41/41) Failure by the Borrower to pay any loan payment and continuation (41/41) 17
Financial Covenants Debt Service Coverage Ratio = Available Revenues Debt Service Requirement > 1.25 Net Liquid Assets = Cash & Level I Investments Permanently Restricted Assets > x 18
Remedies on Default Cease to extend credit to the Municipality Proceed by court action to enforce performance by the Municipality Accelerate the immediate repayment of the loan 19
Findings - Implications What do the gross trends tell us? What does the direct loan analysis tell us? Bank loans are growing, but still a small share Harmful provisions to less sophisticated municipalities Public offerings have low interest rates, high issuance Potential rise in cost of borrowing Sector changes Risk to municipal investors 20
State Based Policy Recommendations Greater enforcement of California s 2014 law to increase reporting Market Penalties for not reporting to CDIAC Outreach/Education to Municipalities 21
Federal Policy Recommendations Committtee on Uniform Security Identification Procedures (CUSIP) Numbers for Private Placement Adopt SEC Amendments Clarify Material Events Notice Expand Definition of Financial Obligations SEC Amendments to Rule 15c-12: Underwriters must require issuers to notify MSRB of (1) the incurrence of direct loans, direct purchases and all material events and (2) occurrences of accelerations and defaults 22