THE 2023 FINALISTS WERE:
BLOOMBERG - Excellence in Treasury
- Air New Zealand
- Contact Energy
- Spark NZ
LINK MARKET SERVICES – Best Investor Relations
- Fletcher Building
- Infratil
- Meridian Energy
- Spark NZ
HUNTER CAMPBELL – Emerging Leader of the Year
- Dean Anderson
- Sam Kellar
BUSINESSNZ – Corporate ESG Award
- ASB Bank
- Kernel Wealth
INVEST NEW ZEALAND – Te Tohu Kahukura Maori Leadership in Finance
- Debbie Birch
- Tracey Hook
- Jamie Rihia
MINTERELLISONRUDDWATTS – M&A Transaction of the Year
- The Merger of Tourism Holdings and Apollo Tourism & Leisure
Acquirer: Tourism Holdings
Financial adviser: Jarden
- Sale of Vodafone New Zealand’s passive mobile tower infrastructure for $1.7b
Financial Advisers: UBS, Barrenjoey
- Acquisition of Z Energy by Ampol
Target: Z Energy
Financial Adviser to Target: Goldman Sachs
PUBLIC TRUST – Debt Deal of the Year
- Aotearoa Towers Hold LP: $905m debt facilities to fund acquisition of Vodafone’s passive mobile tower assets
Borrower: Aotearoa Towers
Financial Adviser: RBC Capital Markets
Joint Mandated Lead Arrangers and Lenders: Export Development Canada, HSBC, ING Bank, NAB, Royal Bank of Canada, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, Westpac
- Lodestone Energy: Senior debt facilities of up to $146m
Borrower: Lodestone
Mandated Lead Arranger, Underwriter and Bookrunner: Westpac
- Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira Incorporated: Debt facilities of $368m to fund purchase of properties from the Crown
Transacting entity: Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira Inc
Mandated Lead Arrangers: Armillary Private Capital, JP Morgan,Craigs Investment Partners
Lenders: ANZ, BNZ, Booster, Fisher Funds, Rotoma No.1 Incorporation, Westpac
- Tourism Holdings: Senior debt facilities of up to $150m to assist in funding the merger with Apollo Tourism & Leisure
Borrower: THL
Mandated Lead Arrangers: ANZ, Westpac
COMPUTERSHARE – NZ Debt Market Issue of the Year
- Napier Port $100m Issue of Senior Bonds
Arranger: Craigs Investment Partners
Joint Lead Managers: Craigs Investment Partners, Forsyth Barr, Jarden, Westpac
- Issuer: New Zealand Debt Management
Issue: $3b Senior Unsecured Fixed Rate Green Bonds
Joint Lead Managers: ANZ, BNZ, Deutsche Bank, UBS, Westpac
Green Bond Framework: Joint Structuring Advisers: BNZ, Deutsche Bank
- Issuer: Spark Finance; Unsecured, Unsubordinated, Sustainability-Linked fixed rate bonds, $100m, maturity date 29 September 2028
Sole Arranger and Sole Sustainability Coordinator: ANZ
PwC – NZ Equity Market Transaction of the Year
- Air New Zealand $1.2b (200% of issued capital) renounceable rights offer
Joint Lead Managers and Underwriters: UBS, Citigroup
Joint Lead Manager: Forsyth Barr
- Mercury NZ, underwritten dividend reinvestment plan $93m
Underwriter: Craigs Investment Partners
- Vital Healthcare Property Trust $200m equity raise
Joint Lead Managers and Underwriters: Craigs Investment Partners, Forsyth Barr
FITCH RATINGS – Innovation in Financial Services
- ANZ - Environmental and geospatial platform (ESGIS)
- Forsyth Barr - Inaugural Carbon and ESG ratings
- Sharesies - Changing the way retail investors participate in capital raises
- Sharesies - Executing Staff Share schemes
BDO – Mid-Market Equity Transaction of the Year
- Lodestone Energy, Series B Equity Raise
Issuer: Lodestone
Sole Financial adviser: Jarden
- Sale of MMC Group Holdings
Vendors: Pencarrow Private Equity, Rob Moss, Tom Reiher
Lead Financial Adviser: Cameron Partners
CHAPMAN TRIPP – Diversified Growth Fund Manager
- Milford Asset Management
- Trust Management
TAX MANAGEMENT NZ – Mid-Market Debt Transaction of the Year
- Fingermark Holdings: Multi-option working capital facility
Borrower: Fingermark
Banker: BNZ
- The Foundation Village Partnership: Construction facility
Borrower: The Foundation Village Partnership
Lender: ANZ
- Lodestone Energy: Subordinated Debt Financing
Borrower: Lodestone
Lead Manager: Jarden
Funder: IFM Investors
- Nga Maunga Whakahii O Kaipara Whenua Hoko Holdings (WHH): Facilities to finance property JV
Borrower: WHH, Ngati Whatua o Kaipara’s commercial property subsidiary
Financial Adviser: PwC
Lender: ANZ
The following Award categories will be announced at the Awards Dinner:
JOHNSON PARTNERS - Leadership Award
NZX - Research Report of the Year
INFINZ Fellowships
In 2022 the INFINZ Awards program was significantly refreshed to reflect the following –
- INFINZ’s membership which now encompasses the broader financial services ecosystem which is fulfilling the vision when the Society of Investment Analysts and the Society of Corporate Treasurers merged in 2002 to create an organisaton that had a broader industry focus
- the changing shape of the financial services industry including the growth in corporate finance practices, KiwiSaver and innovation including retail investing platforms
- contemporary themes around ESG (especially diversity, inclusion, and climate change) and digital transformation.
The major changes for 2023 are as follows:
- The current Debt Deal award will now focus on transactions over $100m so this will become an institutional banking-focused award.
- The current Excellence in Institutional and Corporate Banking Award will now focus on debt transactions between $10m and $100m and will be renamed the Mid-market Debt Transaction of the year. This revamped award will align with the current Mid-market Equity Transaction of the Year Award for deals between $25m and $250m. The “mid-market” is an important part of the financial services ecosystem and these changes are designed to reflect that. Service offerings that were formerly eligible to be entered in the Excellence Award can be submitted in the Innovation in Financial Services Award.
- The ESG Award will be renamed the Corporate ESG Award as it relates to activities undertaken within the organisaton itself vs investment/funding activity covered in other awards.
- The Research Report Award will be focused on encouraging students and academics to research NZ financial and capital markets.
- Relevant awards will also include a criteria whereby the submitter will need to advise the approach/steps taken to ensure that the (deal, transaction, activity) results in improved outcomes for the climate and stakeholders, including the environment and society.
