New issues for EUR 21 million by three film and TV production companies
Four months after the first transaction on the wine industry, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and UniCredit announce the closing of the second tranche of the 'Supply Chain Basket Bond', the EUR 200 million programme launched to finance the development plans, both in Italy and abroad, of companies belonging to supply chains that are of strategic importance to the Italian economy.
The second issue, finalised today, is entirely dedicated to the Italian cultural sector, with a specific focus on film and television production and distribution.
Three companies have individually issued 7-year fixed-rate minibonds, raising a total of EUR 21 million to finance their investment and development plans in the domestic and international markets.
CDP and UniCredit, acting as anchor investors in the transaction, have also each underwritten 50% of the total amount of these issuances stemming from the programme.
The three internationally recognised Made in Italy issuing companies of excellence, are:
- Iervolino and Lady Bacardi Entertainment S.p.A., a global production company founded by Andrea Iervolino and active in the production of film and television content, including films, TV-shows, web series and more. The company is listed on the AIM market.
- Leone Film Group, a leading independent film and audio-visual production and distribution company in Italy founded by Sergio Leone in 1989. Listed on the AIM market in 2013, the majority shareholders are the director's children, Andrea and Raffaella Leone.
- Lucky Red, a company founded in 1987 by Andrea Occhipinti and Kermit Smith, is one of the most popular independent companies in the audio-visual sector, active in all segments: production and distribution of films and series, cinemas, sales abroad. They recently created Miocinema, a quality digital cinema platform
Andrea Casini, Head of Corporate at UniCredit Italy, said "We are proud to have dedicated this new tranche of the Basket Bond to companies in the cultural production sector, one of the areas of Made in Italy excellence that contributes to determining the identity of our country, also internationally. The innovative transaction signed today is further concrete proof of the dynamism shown in recent years by the main Italian operators in the sector. We are convinced that we have provided companies with an effective tool to gain access to the capital market in an advantageous and streamlined way, opening up sources of financing useful to support their investments".
Paolo Calcagnini, Deputy General Manager of CDP, said "With this transaction, CDP is taking a further step in its efforts to encourage the growth of businesses through specific supply chain programmes in sectors, such as culture, that have always represented Made in Italy products around the world. The use of the Basket Bond instrument confirms CDP's capacity for financial innovation, working together with the banking system to support business development and internationalisation. The results achieved by previous issues demonstrate the strength of the programme and the desire to give more companies access to the capital market".
Andrea Iervolino, Chairman of Iervolino and Lady Bacardi Entertainment SpA said: "By participating in this operation promoted by CDP and UniCredit, our company is recognized as value-creator in the culture sector and as a representative of the Made in Italy industry. We attribute great importance to this initiative, which identifies our business as strategic for the country's economy, and we are happy to be able to collect resources to grow in Italy and abroad".
The Managing Director of Leone Film Group, Raffaella Leone, said "This bond issue is a very interesting way for us to diversify and broaden our sources of financing, and it was carried out with two leading financial Italian institutions as UniCredit and CDP. These funds will be invested in new productions and content acquisition and will facilitate the relaunch after the challenging pandemic period."
Andrea Occhipinti, founder of Lucky Red said: "The audio-visual sector is experiencing a moment of great expansion, stimulated by the demand for content from streaming platforms and national broadcasters. Lucky Red, which has long been involved in the entire supply chain, has more than tripled its production capacity, both for films and series. We are very happy to have UniCredit and CDP as partners in this growth path: an important support to complete our projects".
Milan, Rome
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