RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust announces offering of $250 million, 7-year Series AF senior unsecured debentures at a coupon rate of 4.628% with an all-in interest rate of 3.829% after including the benefits of its bond forward hedges

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TORONTO, April 06, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust ("RioCan" or the "Trust") (TSX: REI.UN) today announced that it has agreed to issue $250 million principal amount of Series AF senior unsecured debentures (the "Debentures"). This issuance provides additional liquidity to RioCan to support its strategy, pursue opportunities and manage potential risks. Inclusive of the benefit of bond forward hedges, the all-in rate of 3.829% is favourable compared to current market rates and RioCan has an additional $250 million of bond forward contracts in place to hedge future issuances.

The Debentures will be sold at a price of $99.998 per $100 principal amount, with a coupon rate of 4.628% per annum and mature on May 1, 2029. To hedge its exposure to movements in underlying risk-free interest rates relating to the Trust's financings, RioCan previously entered into certain bond forward contracts with a notional aggregate value of $500 million. In connection with this offering, $250 million of the contracts will be settled with a favourable realized mark-to-market of $14 million to the Trust. This gain will be amortized over the term of the Debentures. The net proceeds of this offering will be used by the Trust to repay certain debt incurred in the ordinary course including replenishing its corporate line of credit.

The Debentures are being offered on an agency basis by a syndicate of agents co-led by TD Securities, BMO Capital Markets, CIBC Capital Markets, RBC Capital Markets and Scotia Capital Inc. Subject to customary closing conditions, the offering is expected to close on April 18, 2022.

It is a condition of closing that DBRS Limited assign a rating of at least BBB with a stable trend and Standard & Poor's assign a rating of at least BBB for the Debentures with a negative outlook to the entity rating given to RioCan.

The offering is being made on a private placement basis in each of the provinces of Canada, and the Debentures will be issued pursuant to RioCan's trust indenture dated March 8, 2005, as supplemented. The Debentures will rank equally with all other senior unsecured indebtedness of the Trust. 

The Debentures being offered have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

About RioCan
RioCan is one of Canada's largest real estate investment trusts. RioCan owns, manages and develops retail-focused, increasingly mixed-use properties located in prime, high-density transit-oriented areas where Canadians want to shop, live and work. As at December 31, 2021, our portfolio is comprised of 207 properties with an aggregate net leasable area of approximately 36.4 million square feet (at RioCan's interest) including office, residential rental and 13 development properties. To learn more about us, please visit www.riocan.com.

Forward Looking Information
This News Release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. This information reflects RioCan's objectives, our strategies to achieve those objectives, as well as statements with respect to management's beliefs, estimates and intentions concerning anticipated future events or expectations that are not historical facts. Forward-looking information generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "outlook", "objective", "may", "will", "would", "expect", "intend", "estimate", "anticipate", "believe", "should", "plan", "continue", or similar expressions suggesting future outcomes or events.

Such forward-looking information reflects management's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to management. All forward-looking information in this News Release is qualified by these cautionary statements.

Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future events or performance and, by its nature, is based on RioCan's current estimates and assumptions, which are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including those described in the "Risks and Uncertainties" section in RioCan's MD&A for the period ended December 31, 2021 and in our most recent Annual Information Form, which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from the forward-looking information contained in this News Release.

Although the forward-looking information contained in this News Release is based upon what management believes are reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that actual results will be consistent with this forward-looking information.

The forward-looking statements contained in this News Release are made as of the date hereof, and should not be relied upon as representing RioCan's views as of any date subsequent to the date of this News Release. Management undertakes no obligation, except as required by applicable law, to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.