Linklaters advises Cathay Life Insurance on its debut US$600m offshore capital bond issuance

Linklaters advised Cathay Life Insurance (Cathay Life) on its US$600m 10-year subordinated corporate bond issuance. This marks the first US dollar bond issuance by a Taiwanese insurance company in the international bond market and the first international regulatory capital issuance by a Taiwanese financial institution.

Cathay Life, wholly owned subsidiary of Cathay Financial Holdings, is one of Taiwan’s largest insurance company. The successful issuance was oversubscribed by institutional investors, with the investor base including fund and asset managers, insurance and pension funds and banks amongst others. The proceeds from the transaction will be used to supplement and strengthen Cathay Life's regulatory capital adequacy ratio.

The Linklaters team was led by capital markets partners Hwang Hwa Sim and Terence Lau

This transaction builds upon Linklaters’ longstanding leadership in the debt capital markets space and further strengthens our reputation among top-tier insurers in Asia. The firm also recently advised FWD Group on its US$600m 7.635% subordinated dated capital securities due 2031, and the managers on China Taiping’s issuance of US$2bn perpetual subordinated capital securities, which was named the “Best Bond Deal – China Offshore” in FinanceAsia Achievement Awards 2023.