So what's the thinking on the Bond?

[St Bruno]

According to A J Bell website, it was apparently delisted shortly after the maturity date of 13 May, that is to say some time before 20 May. From that date, they were quoting no price.

[Shugs]

That would be normal as it’s past it’s maturity date. Due diligence is a massively finicky process - especially in todays financial climate. I still think this will get done - and the bond holders will get another slice of interest while they wait.

[Rossm]

My financial knowledge is minimal but I think it's a poor show.

[MarleyWasp]

https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/wasps-confirm-further-delay-repayment-24362226

[Rossm]

Bobby strikes a hopeful note (I think ).

[Heathen]

"The Coventry Building Society Arena, formerly the Ricoh Arena, was purchased using a unique bond scheme"

Wrong. The Ricoh was purchased essentially by Derek. The Bond was issued to repay some of Derek's investment and raise capital to fund other works. The bond was issued in 2015, not 2014 when the purchase took place.

[Heathen]

If were in the deepest kacky as some would wish for, then the Training Centre would not have been built by now..

[jamestaylor002]

I'm not a financial expert but after reading statements, it sounded like things weren't that bad. Sure, it's not ideal, but hardly club destroying. It'll be made out worse than it is because there will be the usual group that want to make it a bigger deal than it is.

[Steve from Cov]

If were in the deepest kacky as some would wish for, then the Training Centre would not have been built by now..

+1.

[Bloke in North Dorset]

The economic and financial situation has changed quite a lot in the past few months. My guess is that with uncertainty in inflation forecasts there’s some haggling over the interest rate of whatever instrument their going to use next, presumably another bond.

[St Bruno]

B-i-n-D,
I think it's as much to do with the perceived value of the long leasehold (and the supposed dilapidations) as that'll be the security for the borrowing.
As far as the dilaps are concerned, it is the industry norm that they are totally overstated by the surveyor in question. A client of mine just had one such surveyor in to assess the dilaps on a premises of his on which the lease was allowed to expire. The surveyor came up with £160k which was absolutely nuts but he accepted £40k from the bank who had closed that branch.

[Neils]

From today's Telegraph-


Despair for investors trapped in Wasps’ £35m bond
Former London rugby club raised money from DIY investors to buy a stadium in Coventry

By
Lauren Almeida
8 July 2022 • 7:00am
 A view of The Coventry Building Society Arena, home of Wasp
Adrian Rossiter, a consultant from London, invested thousands of pounds in a retail bond issued by Wasps, the rugby union club, in 2015, lured by the promise of 6.5pc annual interest and the guarantee that he would get all his money back in 2022.

Seven years later, Mr Rossiter’s cash is trapped in a bond that has vanished from the market.

Wasps – six-time Premiership champions – raised £35m from DIY investors in 2015 to buy a stadium, the Coventry Building Society Arena, after relocating to the city from London in 2014. Unlike “mini” bonds, retail bonds are tradeable on the stock market.

But the bond was suspended from the London Stock Exchange this May, after the club announced on its last day of trading that it would not be able to meet its repayments.

Mr Rossiter was left out-of-pocket and enraged. “I was absolutely furious that Wasps waited until the bond’s maturity date to say they could not give us back our money,” he said. “It is totally inexcusable for [the issuer of] a seven-year bond to wait until its last day of trading.”

Wasps is pursuing a refinancing agreement with HSBC, but investors have grown anxious that the bond is hurtling towards a default.

Last week, the rugby club served a “notice in the event of default”, informing investors that it hoped to agree to refinancing terms with HSBC by August 13. It said it would update bondholders no later than July 29.

However, bond experts have warned that if Wasps fails to secure an agreement, it would be the first ever retail bond to default after being listed on the stock exchange.

Kim Barrett, a financial adviser, said savers should be wary of investing in individual bonds from relatively small businesses such as Wasps, which typically came with a higher level of risk.

A spokesman for Wasps said investors would keep getting 6.5pc interest payments until the bond is repaid, including beyond the maturity date.

He said: “Wasps continues to work towards completing its refinancing and the redemption of the bonds on, or before, August 12 2022.”

[Bloke in North Dorset]

Adrian Rossiter, a consultant from London, invested thousands of pounds in a retail bond issued by Wasps, the rugby union club, in 2015, lured by the promise of 6.5pc annual interest and the guarantee that he would get all his money back in 2022.

A bond pays 6.5% interest  because it is not guaranteed to be paid back. Interest rates are a measure of risk above government bonds and at the  time govt 10 year bond yields were around 1%.

If it sounds too good to be true .....

I note he's still getting 6.5% so unless he needs the money for something else he's still getting a good return, although govt 10Y bond yield is now just over 2%.

[Shugs]

Agree. The reality is that bond holders will get 6.5% interest for a bit longer than they thought and then be repaid in full. No investment of this nature is risk free and the clamour for “communication” within the constraints of how much is legal for sharing is crazy.

[hookender]

Agree. The reality is that bond holders will get 6.5% interest for a bit longer than they thought and then be repaid in full. No investment of this nature is risk free and the clamour for “communication” within the constraints of how much is legal for sharing is crazy.

Indeed .seems to be a lot of the ‘clamour for info’ has been from people with no actual investment must be a reason why the rate offered was13.5 times the normal savings rate 7 years ago.