Resimac issues $1bn RMBS transaction

Resimac has announced that it has closed a $1-billion non-conforming residential mortgage-backed security (RMBS) transaction.

The non-bank lender’s CEO, Scott McWilliam, said the Resimac Bastille Trust Series 2020-1NC launched yesterday and had received strong support from onshore and offshore investors.

The transaction’s $500-million book was largely covered at launch, which provided a clear avenue to double the size of the transaction, Mr McWilliam added.

“The final book was oversubscribed in all but one sub-investment grade tranche, with a pleasing mix of 20 domestic and offshore investors, including a significant international investor new to Resimac,” he said.

The transaction will further support Resimac’s specialist lending origination capabilities, according to Mr McWilliam.

The Australian Office of Financial Management’s (AOFM) Structured Finance Support Fund (SFSF) provided “backstop coverage” to the transaction, but Mr McWilliam said Resimac did not require it due to real money demand.

The SFSF was announced in March as a $15-billion investment fund to enable small lenders to continue lending to small businesses and individual customers throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

Macquarie Bank and NAB were co-managers and joint lead managers of the Bastille Trust Series 2020-1NC, while the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), Deutsche Bank AG and Wells Fargo Securities were joint lead managers.

Resimac’s latest issuance follows its $500-million RMBS transaction in May, which was its first since COVID-19 began.

The AOFM provided secondary market support with cornerstone investors and was not required to participate in the primary book.

According to Resimac, to date it has issued almost $30 billion in bonds across 48 transactions in the global fixed-income markets as part of its securitisation program.

It has a portfolio of mortgages on balance sheet of more than $10 billion and assets under management of over $13 billion.

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Malavika Santhebennur is the features editor on the mortgages titles at Momentum Media.

Before joining the team in 2019, Malavika held roles with Money Management and Benchmark Media. She has been writing about financial services for the past six years.