Mini-bonds and retail bonds
Similarity
- They are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation
Scheme and considered as risky investments. (Hargreaves Lansdown investment
expert Adrian Lowcock)
- They are smaller in size compared with corporate bonds or government bonds and are issued by smaller firms.
Differences
- Mini-bonds are not listed on the stock exchange, or on any
other platform, while retail bonds are listed on the London Stock Exchange’s
Order Book for Retail Bonds.
- Mini-bonds need to be held until expiry some years later while
retail bonds on the ORB can be bought and sold during normal market hours,
allowing investors the opportunity to both value and sell the bond.
These are also the risks associated with investing in
mini-bonds and, in exchange, the mini-bond yield is higher than retail bonds.
A few examples of mini-bonds in the UK renewable energy sector
October 2010 Ecotricity
Ecotricity, a UK-based provider of electricity through
renewable energy, raised £10 million through the launch of “EcoBonds” to its
40,000 business customers including body shops, EMI and co-operative banks,
small and medium sized businesses, organic food retailers, local authorities,
and schools. These are four year bonds with an interest rate of 7% (Ecotricity
customers qualify for an improved rate of 7.5%). Minimum investment was set at
$500 to encourage small investors to participate. The £10 million raised will
fund Ecotricity’s equity investment in 12 wind farms then in development in the
UK. The total aggregate projects costs will be £25-£30 million. Ecotricity will
fund the remainder through debt financing from the banks. The Ecobond funding
will also go toward initial development of solar projects and research and
development into tidal energy.
September 2013 A Shade
Greener
A similar offering came from UK-based A Shade Greener which is aiming to
raise £10m from small investors (min. £1000) by offering 3 year retail
bonds at 6% annual return, but with an interesting twist – all
the interest paid upfront as a lump sum. The company will use the proceeds to
install panels at no cost to the householder and collects the feed-in tariff
payments. As with the CBD bond, this must be held for three years until
maturity.
October 2013 Good Energy Group plc
Good Energy Group plc set out to raise £5 million through a
retail bond offering to finance investment in solar and wind energy generation.
Within three weeks, Good Energy easily met their target, closing the book at
£15m three weeks ahead of schedule. The bond offers investors a coupon of 7.25%
per annum, paid every half-year. It has an initial term of four years and investments
can be executed in multiples of £500 with no upper limit.
December 2013 Secured Energy Bond
Australia-based CBD Energy offered a “Secured Energy Bond”
to raise finance to install solar panels for chosen UK businesses at no cost to
the business but with income derived from Feed-In Tariffs. The bond is secured
against the assets of the company and also has a corporate guarantee from the
parent company. It will pay an annual coupon of 6.5%. The minimum investment
into the bond is £2,000 for a 3 year fixed term and as the bond is
non-transferable, it has to be held to maturity in late 2016.
