7th December 2004, Hong Kong – LAWFUEL – First for law news – The Hong Kong office of Jones Day advised Ambac Assurance Corporation, as guarantor, on the issuance by Korea First Mortgage No. 3 PLC of €550 million Guaranteed Secured Floating Rate Notes due 2036, originated by Korea First Bank on a pool of residential mortgage loans in Korea. BNP Paribas, Calyon and The Royal Bank of Scotland acted as joint arrangers.
The transaction involved a 30-year cross-currency interest rate swap with Calyon, the longest ever on any Korean securitization, in which Ambac issued an unconditional 30-year swap guarantee in addition to its 30-year unconditional note guarantee. The deal closed 6th December 2004.
The transaction constitutes both the largest-ever (in terms of deal size) and the longest-ever (in terms of legal maturity) cross-border securitization out of Korea to date. It is also the third cross-border RMBS deal completed by the same originator, Korea First Bank, in a single year, all of which Jones Day advised on.
The Jones Day team comprised of partner Jeff Chen and senior associate Joseph Chow. Commenting on Jones Day’s role in the transaction, Jeff Chen said “The all-in pricing on this wrapped transaction was incredibly tight and bodes well for the prospects of wrapped deals out of Korea in 2005.”
