26 Jan 2015
New York Met plans US$250m bond offering
BY Tom Anstey
New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art is to sell US$250m (€218m, £166.1m) of taxable bonds to finance future infrastructure projects.
As of 30 June 2014, the museum had US$172m (€150.6m, £114.3m) of debt – stemming from bonds issued in 1993 and 2006 – according to its latest annual report.
“Given the museum’s strong financial position, world-renowned collection, and global reputation, we expect our transaction to be well-received by capital markets,” said a museum spokesperson. The Met has a US$3bn (€2.6bn, £2bn) endowment, meaning repayments of the bond issue shouldn’t be a problem for the museum.
Moody’s Investor Service, which is handling the bond issue, said: “The stable outlook reflects our expectations that the museum will continue to generate revenue and resource growth in support of its increased leverage. It is also predicated on the continuation of positive operating performance, maintenance of strong liquidity, no additions to long-term debt, and no material increase in the use of short-term debt.”
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