Canada Housing Trust No. 1 Completes $2.975B and $6.5B Public Offerings

Canada Housing Trust No. 1, a special purpose securitization trust, completed two debt financings. The first, on November 25, 2009, consisted of the issuance of 3.750 per cent Canada Mortgage Bonds, Series 30, in an aggregate principal amount of $1.475 billion and Floating Rate Canada Mortgage Bonds, Series 31, in an aggregate principal amount of $1.5 billion for a combined total of $2.975 billion of Canada Mortgage Bonds, which were provided with Canada's sovereign guarantee through Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC).

The trust completed the second debt financing on December 18, 2009. It consisted of the issuance of 2.750 per cent Canada Mortgage Bonds, Series 32, in an aggregate principal amount of $6.5 billion, which were provided with Canada's sovereign guarantee through CMHC.

CMHC was represented in-house by Reem Hindieh and Marc-André Sirois and was assisted by Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, counsel to CMHC and special counsel to the trust, with a team that included Rosalind Morrow and Terence Lui (corporate and securities); Stephen Redican, Gus Karantzoulis and Tiffany Murray (banking and financial services) and Larissa Tkachenko (tax) in Toronto; and Johanne Thomas (civil) in Montréal. In the United States, CMHC and the trust were represented by Kevin Keogh, Sang Ji, Terry O'Brien and Gerret Baur of White & Case LLP.

For both Series 30 and 31, the underwriting syndicate was led by BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., Merrill Lynch Canada Inc., RBC Dominion Securities Inc. and Scotia Capital Inc.

For Series 32, the underwriting syndicate was led by The Toronto-Dominion Bank, CIBC World Markets Inc., Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. and RBC Dominion Securities Inc.

Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP represented the underwriters, with a team that consisted of Carol Pennycook and Sonny Bhalla (corporate and securities) and Ronald Wilson (tax) in Toronto; and Scott Tayne (corporate and securities) and Erica Duncan (tax) in New York.