Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC) has invested £55m (€63m) as debt in Northern Ireland-based Clanmil Housing Association.

PIC said its investment in Clanmil is part of a wider £100m fundraising, which will be used to help achieve their target of building 1,400 new homes by 2026.

The specialist insurer of defined benefit pension funds said the investment will be drawn down over a two-year period, helping Clanmil reduce interest payments, allowing them to complete their planning process. PIC’s investment split between a £25m drawdown until September 2023, and £30m delayed drawdown until September 2024.

The deal is PIC’s second investment in a Northern Ireland-based housing association, following a £100m investment in Apex Housing Association.

Eugenia Korobova, senior debt origination manager in charge of public finance at PIC Capital, said: “We are very happy to have invested in Clanmil, one of Northern Ireland’s largest social housing providers. Sourcing long-dated cash flows is important to PIC in order to help us to achieve our purpose, which is to fund the pensions of our current and future policyholders.

“Investing in social housing and other illiquid assets allows PIC to generate enhanced yield, helping us to secure more pension liabilities. This, in turn, means more trustees can guarantee their members’ pensions through buy-ins and buyouts, greatly improving their financial security in retirement.”

Carol McTaggart Clanmil Housing’s CEO, said: “We are delighted to have secured a total £100m funding facility with three investment partners, including PIC, an established and well-respected funder to the social housing sector.

“As part of our planned funding strategy, this new funding facility will be used to support Clanmil’s growth and development ambitions to deliver 1,400 much-needed new homes across Northern Ireland.”

Clanmil is building 48 apartments for active older people, as part of a larger retirement village development, in Carrickfergus, County Antrim.

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