RBC Capital Markets today announced the successful completion of a $2.5 billion Maple bond transaction by Morgan Stanley. Not only is this the largest Maple bond transaction, it is the largest corporate bond deal in Canadian financial markets.

The multi-tranche transaction, jointly led by Morgan Stanley, RBC Capital Markets and Scotia Capital, represented the issuers’ inaugural foray into the Canadian bond market. The transaction consisted of $1.25 billion of 5-year fixed rate notes, $900 million of 10-year fixed rate notes and $350 million of 5-year floating rate notes. Strong investor interest was driven by Morgan Stanley’s high credit quality, strong brand recognition and a favourable new issue environment.

“The success of this transaction shows that the Maple market has a healthy appetite for both high quality issuers and sizeable issues,” said Larry Bates, Managing Director. “As a result, we’re seeing a great deal of interest in Maples by global issuers. These borrowers view Canada as a great market for accessing financing.” RBC Capital Markets is the leading underwriter of debt in Canada and has the leading market share in the Maple market.

“We are extremely pleased with the investor reception to and the success of our inaugural Maple issue. This transaction represents the largest ever inaugural transaction in any global market for Morgan Stanley. We look forward to the Maple market continuing to be a significant part of our global financing program,” said Jai Sooklal, Assistant Treasurer and Global Head of Financing at Morgan Stanley.

Defined as Canadian dollar denominated bonds issued by a non-Canadian entity, typically in Canada, Maple bonds provide issuers with a new source of funds and investors with portfolio diversification.