On March 22, 2016 Canada Housing Trust No. 1, a special purpose securitization trust, completed a debt financing comprising the issuance of 1.250 per cent Canada Mortgage Bonds, Series 71, in an aggregate principal amount of $5 billion, provided with Canada’s sovereign guarantee through Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).
CMHC was represented in-house by Sébastien Gignac, Reem Hindieh and Audrey Chauvin, who were assisted by Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, counsel to CMHC and special counsel to the trust, with a Toronto-based team including Rosalind Morrow, Francesca Smirnakis and Colin Cameron-Vendrig (corporate and securities), Stephen Redican, Gus Karantzoulis, Aliza Premji and Arthur Nahas (banking and financial services) and Daniel Lang (tax); and Johanne Thomas (civil) in Montréal.
In the US, CMHC and the trust were represented by John Donovan, Sang Ji, Terry O’Brien and Steven Gee of White & Case LLP.
The underwriting syndicate for Series 71 was led by CIBC World Markets Inc., BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., National Bank Financial Inc. and Scotia Capital Inc., and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP represented the underwriters, with a team that consisted of Steven Smith, Victoria Au and Blake Binions (corporate and securities) and Gregory Wylie (tax) in Toronto, Jason Comerford and Matthew Sadofsky (corporate and securities) and Paul Seraganian and Jennifer Lee (tax) in New York.