Prospectus • Jun 4, 2025
Prospectus
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(incorporated with limited liability under the laws of England and Wales)
The issue price of the £250,000,000 5.250 per cent. Bonds due 2032 (the "Bonds") of Derwent London plc (the "Issuer") is 99.493 per cent. of their principal amount.
Unless previously redeemed or cancelled the Bonds will be redeemed at their principal amount on 30 May 2032 (the "Maturity Date"). Subject to certain conditions, the Bonds may be redeemed at the option of the Issuer in whole but not in part at any time after the Issue Date at a redemption price per Bond equal to (a) if the Optional Redemption Date (as defined in Condition 6(c) (Redemption at the option of the Issuer)) is on or after 29 February 2032 the principal amount of the Bond; or (b) otherwise, the higher of the principal amount of the Bond and an amount calculated by reference to the then yield of the UKT 1 per cent. due January 2032 plus a margin of 0.20 per cent., in all cases together with accrued interest, described under Condition 6(c) (Redemption and Purchase – Redemption at the option of the Issuer). Subject to certain conditions set out in Condition 6 (Redemption and Purchase), the Bonds may also be redeemed at any time upon the occurrence of certain changes affecting taxes in the United Kingdom ("UK"). In addition, upon the occurrence of certain change of control events which result in a negative ratings action being taken by a relevant credit rating agency, each holder of the Bonds (a "Bondholder") shall have the option to require the Issuer to redeem or, at the Issuer's option, purchase the Bonds of such Bondholder at their principal amount together with accrued interest. See Condition 6(d) (Redemption and Purchase – Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control).
The Bonds will bear interest from 4 June 2025 (the "Issue Date") at the rate of 5.250 per cent. per annum payable semi-annually in arrear on 30 May and 30 November of each year commencing on 30 November 2025. Payments on the Bonds will be made in pounds sterling without deduction for or on account of taxes imposed or levied by the United Kingdom to the extent described under Condition 8 (Taxation).
This document (the "Prospectus") has been approved by the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA"), as competent authority under Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 as it forms part of domestic law of the United Kingdom by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended by the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020) ("EUWA") (the "UK Prospectus Regulation"). The FCA only approves this Prospectus as meeting the standards of completeness, comprehensibility and consistency imposed by the UK Prospectus Regulation. Such approval should not be considered as an endorsement of the Issuer that is the subject of this Prospectus nor as an endorsement of the quality of any Bonds that are the subject of this Prospectus. Investors should make their own assessment as to the suitability of investing in such Bonds. Application has been made for the Bonds to be admitted to listing on the Official List of the FCA (the "Official List") and to trading on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange plc (the "London Stock Exchange").
UK MiFIR professionals / ECPs-only / No UK PRIIPs KID – the manufacturers' target market is eligible counterparties, as defined in the Financial Conduct Authority's Handbook Conduct of Business Sourcebook and professional clients, as defined in Regulation (EU)
No 600/2014 as it forms part of domestic law of the United Kingdom by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended by the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020) ("UK MiFIR") (all distribution channels). No key information document pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 1286/2014 as it forms part of domestic law of the United Kingdom by virtue of the EUWA (the "UK PRIIPs Regulation") has been prepared as the Bonds are not available to retail investors in the UK.
MIFID II professionals/ECPs only / No EU PRIIPs KID – the manufacturers' target market is eligible counterparties and professional clients only, each as defined in Directive 2014/65/EU (as amended, "MiFID II"). No Regulation (EU) No. 1286/2014 (as amended, the "EU PRIIPs Regulation") key information document has been prepared as the Bonds are not available to retail investors in the EEA.
The Bonds have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act") or the state securities laws of any state of the United States, and the Bonds are subject to United States tax law requirements. The Bonds are being offered outside the United States by the Managers (as defined in "Subscription and Sale") in accordance with Regulation S under the Securities Act ("Regulation S"), and may not be offered, sold, pledged, taken up, resold, transferred or delivered directly or indirectly into the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons (as defined in Regulation S under the Securities Act) except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States and any other jurisdiction.
The Bonds will be in bearer form and in the denominations of £100,000 and integral multiples of £1,000 in excess thereof, up to and including £199,000. The Bonds will initially be in the form of a temporary global bond (the "Temporary Global Bond"), without interest coupons, which will be deposited on or around 4 June 2025 (the "Closing Date") with a common depositary for Euroclear Bank SA/NV ("Euroclear") and Clearstream Banking S.A. ("Clearstream, Luxembourg"). The Temporary Global Bond will be exchangeable, in whole or in part, for interests in a permanent global bond (the "Permanent Global Bond"), without interest coupons, not earlier than 40 days after the Closing Date upon certification as to non-U.S. beneficial ownership. Interest payments in respect of the Bonds cannot be collected without such certification of non-U.S. beneficial ownership. The Permanent Global Bond will be exchangeable in certain limited circumstances in whole, but not in part, for Bonds in definitive form ("Definitive Bonds") in the denomination of £100,000 each and integral multiples of £1,000 in excess thereof, up to and including £199,000 and with interest coupons attached. See "Summary of Provisions Relating to the Bonds in Global Form".
An investment in the Bonds involves risk. Prospective investors in the Bonds are recommended to read this Prospectus, including the section entitled "Risk Factors" carefully. Investors should reach their own investment decision about the Bonds only after consultation with their own financial and legal advisers about the risks associated with an investment in the Bonds and the suitability of investing in the Bonds in light of the particular characteristics and terms of the Bonds in light of each investor's particular financial circumstances.
The Bonds are expected to be rated A- by Fitch Ratings Ltd ("Fitch"). Fitch is established in the United Kingdom ("UK") and registered under Regulation (EU) No 1060/2009 on credit rating agencies as it forms part of domestic law of the United Kingdom by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended by the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020) (the "UK CRA Regulation"). Fitch appears on the latest update of the list of registered credit rating agencies (as of 2 June 2025 on UK FCA's Financial Services Register). Fitch is not established in the European Union and it has not applied for registration under Regulation (EU) No. 1060/2009 (as amended) (the "EU CRA Regulation"). The rating issued by Fitch has been endorsed by Fitch Ratings Ireland Limited which is established in the European Union and registered under the EU CRA Regulation. As such, Fitch Ratings Ireland Limited is included in the list of credit rating agencies published by the European Securities and Markets Authority ("ESMA") on its website (at http://www.esma.europa.eu/page/List-registered-and-certified-CRAs) in accordance with the EU CRA Regulation. A security rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities and may be subject to suspension, reduction or withdrawal at any time by the assigning rating agency.
Barclays HSBC NatWest
2 June 2025
| IMPORTANT NOTICES 1 | |
|---|---|
| DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE 5 | |
| OVERVIEW 6 | |
| RISK FACTORS 9 | |
| TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE BONDS 21 | |
| SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE BONDS IN GLOBAL FORM 38 | |
| USE OF PROCEEDS 40 | |
| DESCRIPTION OF THE GROUP 41 | |
| DESCRIPTION OF THE ISSUER 66 | |
| TAXATION 68 | |
| SUBSCRIPTION AND SALE 70 | |
| GENERAL INFORMATION 72 | |
The Issuer accepts responsibility for the information contained in this Prospectus and declares that, to the best of its knowledge, the information contained in this Prospectus is in accordance with the facts and this Prospectus makes no omission likely to affect the import of such information.
The information set out in the section of this Prospectus "Description of the Group" include extracts from information and data, including industry and market data, released by publicly available third-party sources in Europe and elsewhere. Where information in this Prospectus has been sourced from third parties, this information has been accurately reproduced and as far as the Issuer is aware and able to ascertain from the information published by such third parties, no facts have been omitted which would render the reproduced information inaccurate or misleading in any material respect. The source of third party information is identified where it is used.
The Issuer has confirmed to the Managers named under "Subscription and Sale" (the "Managers") that this Prospectus contains all information regarding the Issuer and the Bonds which is (in the context of the issue of the Bonds) material; such information is true and accurate in all material respects and is not misleading in any material respect; any opinions, predictions or intentions expressed in this Prospectus on the part of the Issuer are honestly held or made and are not misleading in any material respect; this Prospectus does not omit to state any material fact necessary to make such information, opinions, predictions or intentions (in such context) not misleading in any material respect; and all proper enquiries have been made to ascertain and to verify the foregoing.
The Issuer has not authorised the making or provision of any representation or information regarding the Issuer and the Bonds other than as contained in this Prospectus or as approved for such purpose by the Issuer. Any such representation or information should not be relied upon as having been authorised by the Issuer, the Managers or HSBC Corporate Trustee Company (UK) Limited (the "Trustee").
Neither the Managers, the Trustee nor any of their respective affiliates have authorised the whole or any part of this Prospectus, nor have they independently verified the information contained herein, and none of them makes any representation or warranty or accepts any responsibility as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this Prospectus or takes any responsibility for any acts or omissions of the Issuer or any other person (other than the relevant Joint Lead Manager) in connection with the issue and offering of the Bonds. Neither the delivery of this Prospectus nor the offering, sale or delivery of any Bond shall in any circumstances create any implication that there has been no adverse change, or any event reasonably likely to involve any adverse change, in the condition (financial or otherwise) of the Issuer since the date of this Prospectus. Neither the Managers nor the Trustee accept any liability in relation to the information contained in this Prospectus or any other information provided by the Issuer in connection with the distribution of the Bonds. Neither this Prospectus nor any other information supplied in connection with the distribution of the Bonds is intended to constitute, and should not be considered as, a recommendation by any of the Issuer, any member of the Group (as defined below), the Managers or the Trustee that any recipient of this Prospectus or any other information supplied in connection with the distribution of the Bonds should purchase the Bonds. Each potential purchaser of the Bonds should determine for itself the relevance of the information contained in this Prospectus and its purchase of the Bonds should be based upon such investigation as it deems necessary. Neither the Managers nor the Trustee undertake to review the financial condition or affairs of the Issuer during the life of the arrangements contemplated by this Prospectus or to advise any investor or potential investor in the Bonds of any information coming to their attention.
Neither this Prospectus nor any other information supplied in connection with the offering of the Bonds: (i) is intended to provide the basis of any credit or other evaluation; or (ii) should be considered as a recommendation by the Issuer or any member of the Group (as defined below) that any recipient of this Prospectus or any other information supplied in connection with the offering of the Bonds should purchase any Bonds. Each investor contemplating purchasing any Bonds should make its own independent investigation of the financial condition and affairs, and its own appraisal of the creditworthiness, of the Issuer. Neither this Prospectus nor any other information supplied in connection with the offering of the Bonds constitutes an offer or invitation by or on behalf of the Issuer to any person to subscribe for or to purchase any Bonds in any jurisdiction where such offer or invitation is not permitted by law.
The distribution of this Prospectus and the offering, sale and delivery of Bonds in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law. Persons into whose possession this Prospectus come are required by the Issuer and the Managersto inform themselves about and to observe any such restrictions. For a description of certain restrictions
on offers, sales and deliveries of Bonds and on distribution of this Prospectus and other offering material relating to the Bonds, see "Subscription and Sale".
The Group uses certain measures to assess the financial performance of its business. Certain of these measures are termed "non-IFRS" measures because they exclude amounts that are included in, or include amounts that are excluded from, the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with UK-adopted international accounting standards as applied in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006 ("IFRS"), or are calculated using financial measures that are not calculated in accordance with IFRS. These non-IFRS financial measures are included in this Prospectus because the Group believes that these measures enhance prospective investors' understanding of the Group's underlying business performance, indebtedness and its current ability to fund ongoing operations and the Group's ability to service debt requirements. Certain of these non-IFRS financial measures, such as loan-to-value ratios, interest cover ratios and earnings from operational activities and excluding fair value movements on property, debt and interest rate swap valuations) ("EPRA"), are widely used by certain investors, securities analysts and other interested parties as supplemental measures of financial position, financial performance and liquidity. However, these non-IFRS financial measures are not measures based on IFRS and prospective investors should not consider such items as an alternative to the historical financial position or other indicators of the Group's cash flow and forward position based on IFRS measures. These non-IFRS financial measures are not measurements of operating performance under IFRS and should not be considered a substitute for such measurements. These non-IFRS financial measures may not be indicative of the Group's historical operating results nor are they meant to be predictive of potential future results. Other companies may calculate such measures in a different way, and the presentation may not be comparable to similarly entitled measures of other companies.
Unless the context otherwise requires, all references in this document to the "Group" shall have the meaning given to that term in the Conditions (as defined below).
Each potential investor in the Bonds should determine the suitability of such investment in light of its own circumstances. In particular, each potential investor should:
In particular, the Bonds have not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act and the Bonds are subject to United States tax law requirements. Subject to certain exceptions, the Bonds may not be offered, sold or delivered within the United States or to U.S. persons.
In this Prospectus, unless otherwise specified, references to a "Member State" are references to a Member State of the EEA, and references to "£", "pounds sterling" or "Sterling" are to the lawful currency of the UK.
Certain figures included in this Prospectus have been subject to rounding adjustments; accordingly, figures shown for the same category presented in different tables may vary slightly and figures shown as totals in certain tables may not be an arithmetic aggregation of the figures which precede them.
The Group uses certain adjusted figures and underlying growth rates which are not defined by generally accepted accounting principles. Adjusted figures and underlying growth rates are presented as additional performance measures used by management, as they provide relevant information in assessing the Group's performance, position and cash flows. The Group believes that these measures enable investors to more clearly track the core operational performance of the Group, by separating out items of income or expenditure relating to acquisitions, disposals, capital items and excluding currency translation effects, while providing investors with a clear basis for assessing the Group's ability to raise debt and invest in new business opportunities. The Group's management uses these financial measures in evaluating the operating performance of the Group as a whole and the individual business segments. Adjusted and underlying financial measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial information presented in compliance with generally accepted accounting principles. Such measures may not be directly comparable to similarly reported measures by other companies.
RESTRICTIONS OF SALES TO U.S. PERSONS (AS DEFINED IN REGULATION S) – The Bonds have not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act or any U.S. State securities laws and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or the benefit of, U.S. persons as defined in Regulation S under the Securities Act unless an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act is available and in accordance with all applicable securities laws of any state of the United States and any other jurisdiction.
PROHIBITION OF SALES TO EEA RETAIL INVESTORS – The Bonds are not intended to be offered, sold or otherwise made available to and should not be offered, sold or otherwise made available to any retail investor in the EEA. For these purposes, a retail investor means a person who is one (or both) of: (i) a retail client as defined in point (11) of Article 4(1) MiFID II; or (ii) a customer within the meaning of Directive 2016/97/EU (the "Insurance Distribution Directive"), where that customer would not qualify as a professional client as defined in point (10) of Article 4(1) of MiFID II. Consequently, no key information document required by the EU PRIIPs Regulation for offering or selling the Bonds or otherwise making them available to retail investors in the EEA has been prepared and therefore offering or selling the Bonds or otherwise making them available to any retail investor in the EEA may be unlawful under the EU PRIIPs Regulation.
PROHIBITION OF SALES TO UK RETAIL INVESTORS – The Bonds are not intended to be offered, sold or otherwise made available to and should not be offered, sold or otherwise made available to any retail investor in the UK. For these purposes, a retail investor means a person who is one (or both) of: (i) a retail client, as defined in point (8) of Article 2 of Regulation (EU) No 2017/565 as it forms part of domestic law of the United Kingdom by virtue of the EUWA; or (ii) a customer within the meaning of the provisions of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended (the "FSMA") and any rules or regulations made under the FSMA to implement the Insurance Distribution Directive, where that customer would not qualify as a professional client, as defined in point (8) of Article 2(1) of UK MiFIR. Consequently, no key information document required by the UK PRIIPs Regulation for offering or selling the Bonds or otherwise making them available to retail investors in the UK has been prepared and therefore offering or selling the Bonds or otherwise making them available to any retail investor in the UK may be unlawful under the UK PRIIPs Regulation.
UK MiFIR product governance/professional investors and ECPs only target market – Solely for the purposes of each manufacturer's product approval process, the target market assessment in respect of the Bonds in the UK has led to the conclusion that: (i) the target market for the Bonds is only eligible counterparties, as defined in the FCA Handbook Conduct of Business Sourcebook ("COBS"), and professional clients, as defined in UK MiFIR; and (ii) all channels for distribution of the Bonds to eligible counterparties and professional clients are appropriate. Any distributor should take into consideration the manufacturers' target market assessment; however, a distributor subject to the FCA Handbook Product Intervention and Product Governance Sourcebook (the "UK MiFIR Product Governance Rules") is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the Bonds (by either adopting or refining the manufacturers' target market assessment) and determining appropriate distribution channels.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE – This Prospectus is to be read in conjunction with all documents which are deemed to be incorporated in it by reference (see "Documents Incorporated by Reference"). This Prospectus shall be read and construed on the basis that those documents are incorporated in, and form part of, this Prospectus.
Any information contained in or incorporated by reference in any of the documents which are deemed to be incorporated by reference (see "Documents Incorporated by Reference"), which is not incorporated by reference in this Prospectus is either not relevant to investors or is covered elsewhere in this Prospectus and, for the avoidance of doubt, unless specifically incorporated by reference into this Prospectus, information contained on any website does not form part of this Prospectus.
In connection with the issue of the Bonds, NatWest Markets Plc (the "Stabilisation Manager") (or persons acting on behalf of the Stabilisation Manager) may over-allot Bonds or effect transactions with a view to supporting the price of the Bonds at a level higher than that which might otherwise prevail. However, stabilisation may not necessarily occur. Any stabilisation action may begin on or after the date on which adequate public disclosure of the terms of the offer of the Bonds is made and, if begun, may cease at any time, but it must end no later than the earlier of 30 days after the issue date of the Bonds and 60 days after the date of the allotment of the Bonds. Any stabilisation action or over-allotment must be conducted by the Stabilisation Manager (or persons acting on behalf of the Stabilisation Manager) in accordance with all applicable laws and rules.
This Prospectus should be read and construed in conjunction with:
Such documents shall be incorporated with, and form part of, this Prospectus, save that any statement contained in a document which is incorporated by reference herein shall be modified or superseded for the purpose of this Prospectus to the extent that a statement contained herein modifies or supersedes such earlier statement (whether expressly, by implication or otherwise). Any statement so modified or superseded shall not, except as so modified or superseded, constitute a part of this Prospectus.
Copies of documents incorporated by reference in this Prospectus may be obtained (without charge) from the registered office of the Issuer during normal business hours and may also be obtained at the Issuer's website (https://www.derwentlondon.com/investors/results-and-reports) and on the website of the Regulatory News Service operated by the London Stock Exchange at http://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-home.html
The contents of the Issuer's website or any website directly or indirectly linked to the Issuer's website do not form part of this Prospectus and investors should not rely on them.
Any information contained in or incorporated by reference in any of the documents specified above which is not incorporated by reference in this Prospectus is either not relevant to investors or is covered elsewhere in this Prospectus and, for the avoidance of doubt, unless specifically incorporated by reference into this Prospectus, information contained on any website does not form part of this Prospectus. For the purposes of the UK Prospectus Regulation, any documents themselves incorporated by reference in the documents incorporated by reference in this Prospectus shall not form part of this Prospectus.
Within the consolidated financial statements of the Group and financial statements of the Issuer for the year ended 31 December 2023, the Group and Issuer cash flow statements for the year ended 31 December 2022 have been restated as the Group and Issuer have made a voluntary change to its accounting policy in relation to the presentation of the cash flow statements to present it using the 'indirect' method as set out in IAS 7 Statement of Cash Flows. There is no impact upon the main categories of cash within the cash flow statements as a result of this change in presentation. Please refer to note 2 of the audited consolidated financial statements of the Group and the financial statements of the Issuer for the year ended 31 December 2023 for further information.
Within the financial statements of the Issuer for the year ended 31 December 2024, the Issuer reassessed the amounts owed by subsidiaries under 'IAS 1 Presentation of Financial Statements' and, based on expected timing of receipts, £2,327.3m from amounts falling due within one year should have been classified to amounts falling due after more than one year as of 31 December 2023. The unaudited comparative information for the year ended 31 December 2023 has been restated accordingly in the Issuer financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Please refer to note vii of the Issuer financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024 for further details.
This overview must be read as an introduction to this Prospectus and any decision to invest in the Bonds should be based on a consideration of this Prospectus as a whole.
Words and expressions defined in the "Terms and Conditions of the Bonds" or elsewhere in this Prospectus have the same meanings in this overview.
| Issuer: | Derwent London plc | |
|---|---|---|
| Joint Lead Managers: | Barclays Bank PLC, HSBC Bank plc, and NatWest Markets Plc | |
| Manager and Passive Bookrunner: | Wells Fargo Securities International Limited | |
| Trustee: | HSBC Corporate Trustee Company (UK) Limited | |
| Principal Paying Agent: | HSBC Bank plc | |
| Bonds: | £250,000,000 5.250 per cent. Bonds due 2032. | |
| Issue Price: | 99.493 per cent. of the aggregate principal amount. | |
| Issue Date: | 4 June 2025 | |
| Use of Proceeds: | The net proceeds of the issue of the Bonds, after deduction of commissions, fees and estimated expenses, is expected to be approximately £247,920,000 and be used for general corporate purposes of the Group, including the refinancing of existing debt. |
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| Interest: | The Bonds will bear interest from (and including) the Issue Date at a rate of 5.250 per cent. per annum payable semi-annually in arrear on 30 May and 30 November in each year. The first payment of interest will be made on 30 November 2025. |
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| Status: | The Bonds constitute direct, general and unconditional obligations of the Issuer which will at all times rank pari passu among themselves and at least pari passu with all other present and future unsecured obligations of the Issuer, save for such obligations as may be preferred by provisions of law that are both mandatory and of general application. |
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| Form and Denomination: | The Bonds will be issued in bearer form in the denominations of £100,000 and integral multiples of £1,000 in excess thereof up to and including £199,000, each with interest coupons attached. |
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| The Bonds will initially be in the form of a Temporary Global Bond, without interest coupons, which will be deposited on or around the Closing Date with a common depositary for Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg. The Temporary Global Bond will be exchangeable, in whole or in part, for interests in a Permanent Global Bond, without interest coupons, not earlier than 40 days after the Closing Date upon certification as to non U.S. beneficial ownership. Interest payments in respect of the Bonds cannot be collected without such certification of non U.S. beneficial ownership. The Permanent Global Bond will be exchangeable in certain limited circumstances in whole, but not in part, for Definitive Bonds in the denomination of £100,000 each and integral multiples of £1,000 in excess thereof, up to and including £199,000 and with interest coupons attached. |
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| Maturity Date: | 30 May 2032 |
| Optional Redemption: | The Issuer may, at its option, redeem or purchase, or procure that any of its Subsidiaries shall purchase the Bonds in whole or in part at a redemption price per Bond equal to: (a) if the Optional Redemption Date (as defined in Condition 6(c) (Redemption at the option of the Issuer)) is on or after 29 February 2032, the principal amount of the Bond; or (b) otherwise, the higher of the principal amount of the Bond and an amount calculated by reference to the then yield of the UKT 1 per cent. due January 2032 plus a margin of 0.20 per cent., in all cases together with accrued interest, as described under Condition 6(c) (Redemption at the option of the Issuer). |
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| Change of Control Put Event: | Upon the occurrence of a Change of Control (as defined in Condition 6(d) (Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control)) leading to certain contemporaneous negative ratings action being taken by any relevant credit rating agency or agencies, each Bondholder shall have the option to require the Issuer to redeem or, at the option of the Issuer, purchase the Bonds of such holder at a cash purchase price equal to the principal amount thereof plus accrued interest, as described under Condition 6(d) (Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control). |
| Tax Redemption: | In the event of certain tax changes, the Issuer may redeem the Bonds in whole, but not in part, at any time at an amount equal to their principal amount outstanding, together with unpaid interest accrued to (but excluding) the date fixed for redemption, as more fully provided in Condition 6(b) (Redemption for tax reasons). |
| Negative Pledge: | The Bonds will have the benefit of a negative pledge as described in Condition 3 (Negative Pledge). |
| Financial Covenants: | In addition to the negative pledge described above, the Bonds will have the benefit of certain financial covenants relating to Gearing, Interest Cover and Priority Debt as described in Condition 4 (Financial Covenants). |
| Cross Acceleration: | The Bonds will have the benefit of a cross acceleration provision as described in Condition 9(c) (Events of Default - Cross-acceleration). |
| Rating: | The Bonds are expected to be rated A- by Fitch. |
| Taxation: | All payments of principal and interest in respect of the Bonds and the Coupons made by or on behalf of the Issuer shall be made free and clear of, and without withholding or deduction for or on account of, any present or future taxes, duties, assessments or governmental charges of whatever nature imposed, levied, collected, withheld or assessed by or on behalf of the UK or any political subdivision thereof or any authority therein or thereof having power to tax, unless the withholding or deduction of such taxes, duties, assessments or governmental charges is required by law. In that event the Issuer shall, save as provided in Condition 8 (Taxation), pay such additional amounts as will result in receipt by Bondholders and Couponholders after such withholding or deduction of such amounts as would have been received by them had no such withholding or deduction been required. See Condition 8 (Taxation). |
| Governing Law: | The Bonds, the Trust Deed, the Agency Agreement and the Subscription Agreement (each as defined below) and any non contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with them will be governed by English law. |
| Listing and Trading: | Application has been made for the Bonds to be admitted to listing on the Official List of the FCA and to trading on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. |
|---|---|
| Clearing Systems: | Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg. |
| Selling Restrictions: | See "Subscription and Sale". |
| Risk Factors: | Investing in the Bonds involves risks. See "Risk Factors". |
| ISIN: | XS2912253494 |
| Common Code: | 291225349 |
Any investment in the Bonds is subject to a number of risks. Prior to investing in the Bonds, prospective investors should carefully consider risk factors associated with any investment in the Bonds, the business of the Issuer and the industries in which each of them operates together with all other information contained in this Prospectus, including, in particular, the risk factors described below.
The Issuer believes that the factors described below represent the principal risks inherent in investing in the Bonds as at the date of this Prospectus. Additional risks and uncertainties relating to the Issuer that are not currently known to the Issuer, or that either currently deems immaterial, may individually or cumulatively also have a material adverse effect on the business, prospects, results of operations and/or financial position of the Issuer and, if any such risk should occur, the price of the Bonds may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment. Investors should consider carefully whether an investment in the Bonds is suitable for them in light of the information in this Prospectus and their personal circumstances.
Prospective investors should note that the risks relating to the Issuer, the industries in which each of them operates and the Bonds are the risks that the Issuer believes to be the most essential to an assessment by a prospective investor of whether to consider an investment in the Bonds. However, as the risks which the Issuer faces relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future, prospective investors should also read the detailed information set out elsewhere in this Prospectus and reach their own views prior to making any investment decision.
Words and expressions defined in the Conditions below or elsewhere in this Prospectus have the same meanings in this section.
Following the Group's merger with London Merchant Securities plc in February 2007, the Group has been delivering the strategy detailed in "Description of the Group – Strategy". The Group's success depends on implementing its strategy and responding appropriately to internal or external factors including responding to changing work practices as described in "Risk Factors – the future of offices", occupational demand and London's global appeal. In addition, the Group must respond and/or adapt appropriately to economic cycles as the London office market has generally been cyclical in recent decades, with strong growth followed by sharp economic downturns precipitated by rising interest rates coinciding with significant oversupply. The amplitude of these cycles has sometimes been reinforced when banks have held above average property loan exposure. Should the Group fail to respond and adapt to such cycles or execute the projects that underpin its strategy, this may have a negative impact on the Group's expected growth and financial performance.
Agile and homeworking is now common for some of the UK's office-based workforce. As a result, the future role of offices has been subject to considerable discussion among both landlords and occupiers, and more widely in the media. There is a risk that if agile and/or homeworking continues at high levels, and is sustained in the long-term, it could lead to occupiers requiring less space, increased vacant space and downward pressure on rental levels. Artificial Intelligence may also have a future impact. Office space which has fewer desks, more collaboration space, meeting rooms, video conference facilities and other amenities is likely to be more desirable to occupiers. Buildings that are unable to meet these objectives may suffer in value unless they can be redeveloped or repurposed. If the Group fails to develop or update its properties to meet these objectives and think ahead to ensure that its product remains attractive, thereby retaining a competitive edge, this would likely have a material adverse effect on the Group's performance.
Competitors may recognise and react to shifts in demand more effectively than the Group. As a result, the Group may no longer act as a 'disrupter' within the market and the Group's brand may suffer. The Group may also be unable to maintain target occupancy levels or may have to offer lower rents if an increase in competition in the market leads to oversupply. Further, the extent of the increase in competition will depend on whether the properties offered by competitors are located in areas of London or in buildings which appeal to the Group's typical occupiers.
A failure to stay ahead of competition may therefore negatively impact the Group's ability to secure occupiers for its properties at satisfactory rental rates and on a timely basis, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Group's business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
The Issuer's ability to fulfil its obligations under the Bonds depends on the Group continuing to collect rent from its tenants. The majority of the Group's revenues are comprised of rent received from its tenants and any deterioration in businesses and/or profitability of the Group's tenants could in turn adversely affect the Group's rental income or increase the Group's bad debts and/or number of lease terminations. Ultimately, this could lead to the Issuer having insufficient funds to pay interest on the Bonds to Holders.
Due to the current economic conditions, tenants could be facing increased financial difficulty. The UK economy continues to be challenging, with volatility in US trade policies and elevated inflation rates and significant cost increases posing a greater risk of occupier default and late payment. Whilst there has been relative stabilisation of long-term interest rates, a material reduction in inflation and a return to real wage growth for consumers, economic growth is expected to remain modest in the short term.
If any of the Group's tenants enter default, the Group could incur impairments and write-offs of IFRS 16 lease incentive receivable balances, due to the accounting requirement to spread any rent-free incentives given to a tenant over the respective lease term. Such impairments and write-offs may adversely affect the Group's balance sheet and earnings.
Changes in macroeconomic factors may adversely affect London's office market. The Group is exposed to external factors which are outside the Group's control, such as the risks to the future demand for office space described in "Risk factors – The future of offices" above, the 'grey' market in office space (i.e. occupier controlled vacant space), weaknesses in retail and hospitality businesses, increase in hybrid working, the depth of any future recession and subsequent rise in unemployment and the strain in global trade relations with the United States, and/or interest rates. If sustained for an extended period of time, such macroeconomic conditions may lead to a general property market contraction, a decline in rental values and decline in Group income.
The Group's property income is used in its interest cover covenant calculations under the Group's existing financing arrangements. Although the Group has grown its level of interest cover significantly over the past few years and, as at 31 December 2024, rental income would need to fall by c. 62 per cent. before breaching the main interest cover ratio covenant of 145 per cent., should there be a breach of a financial covenant, the Group may be required to cure such breaches through repaying its borrowings. In addition, the Group is required to meet certain financial covenants in respect of gearing and unencumbered assets. Curing a breach of any financial covenant may adversely affect the net asset value of the Group, as the Group may be required to sell some of its assets at less than their market value in order to repay such borrowings. Any reduction in property income could also have an adverse impact on the value of the Group's properties and may hinder any future dividend payments.
Tax laws, regulations and administrative practices to which the Group is subject may be subject to significant changes, with or without notice, due to economic, political and other similar conditions.
Changes in tax law (including tax rates) could have a prospective or retroactive application to the Group and could have a negative impact on its effective tax rate and/or tax payments, any of which could adversely affect the Group's business, financial condition or results of operations.
The UK Real Estate Investment Trust ("REIT") regime was launched on 1 January 2007. On 1 July 2007, Derwent London plc elected to convert to REIT status. A REIT is exempt from corporation tax on qualifying income and gains of its property rental business providing various conditions are met.
The REIT distribution requirements potentially limit the Group's ability to fund acquisitions and capital expenditures through retained income earnings. To maintain REIT status and obtain full exemption from UK corporation tax on the profits of the qualifying property rental business of the Issuer (i.e. that part of the Issuer's business from which it generates income from land for rent), the Issuer is required to distribute annually to the Issuer's shareholders an amount sufficient to meet the 90 per cent. distribution test by way of Property Income Distributions ("PIDs"). The Issuer would be required to pay tax at regular UK corporation tax rates on any shortfall to the extent that it distributes as PIDs less than the amount required to meet the 90 per cent. distribution test for each accounting period. Therefore, the Group's ability to fund acquisitions and other capital expenditures would be limited if the Issuer were unable to obtain further debt, issue further shares or dispose of properties. Further, differences in timing between the receipt of cash and the recognition of income for the purposes of the REIT rules and the effect of any potential debt amortisation payments could require the Issuer to borrow funds to meet the distribution requirements that are necessary to achieve the full tax benefits associated with qualifying as a REIT, even if the then-prevailing market conditions are not favourable for these borrowings. As a result of these factors, the constraints of maintaining REIT status could limit the Issuer's flexibility to make investments.
The requirements for maintaining REIT status are complex and the REIT regime, having commenced in 2007, has as yet no case law history of interpretation. Furthermore, there may be changes subsequently introduced (including changes in interpretation) to the requirements for maintaining REIT status. Prospective investors should note that there is no guarantee that the Group will continue to maintain REIT status (whether by reason of failure to satisfy the conditions for REIT status or otherwise) nor can the Issuer guarantee that it will maintain continued compliance with all of the REIT conditions and there is a risk that the REIT regime may cease to apply in some circumstances. In addition, if the conditions for REIT Group status relating to the share capital of the Issuer or the prohibition on entering into certain prohibited loans with abnormal returns are breached, or the Issuer ceases to be UK tax resident, becomes dual tax resident or an open-ended investment company, the Group will automatically lose its REIT status. The Group could therefore lose its status as a REIT as a result of actions by third parties, for example, in the event of a successful takeover by a company that is not a REIT. Alternatively, the Group could voluntarily give notice to cease to be a REIT. If the Group fails to remain qualified as a REIT, members of the Group may be subject to UK corporation or income tax on some or all of its property rental income and chargeable gains on the sale of properties which could have a material impact on the financial condition of the Group. Any of the above matters may have an adverse effect on the Group's business, financial condition and/or results of operations.
As more of the Group's tenants commit to becoming net zero carbon, it is likely that tenants will demand environmentally-friendly buildings. Buildings that fail to reach these standards could lose tenants, suffer a discount and fall in value. In order to improve its older buildings, the Group may need to commit to additional capital expenditure, which may not be recoverable through higher rents. The Group may also be unable to lease the space during the improvement phase, leading to reduced rental income and longer void periods.
There is a risk that carbon taxes on greenhouse gas emissions will lead to increased costs for the Group. In addition, while current environmental regulation in the UK only prohibits the leasing of space with an Energy Performance Certificate ("EPC") rating of 'E' or below, these rules could be updated with a requirement to have a minimum rating of 'C' from 2028. From 2030, it is projected that there will be a further change to a minimum rating of 'B'. An increase in the minimum EPC rating will lead to increased capital expenditure requirements for the Group. Any material increase in the capital expenditure of the Group which cannot be offset through higher rents would have an adverse effect on the Group's financial condition as a whole.
The Group is mainly exposed to credit risk from lease contracts in relation to its property portfolio. As a matter of policy, the Group assesses the credit risk of new tenants before entering into such contracts and the Board of Directors of the Issuer (the "Board") has a Credit Committee which assesses each new tenant before a new lease is signed. The Credit Committee also reviews existing tenant covenants from time to time. Additionally, the Group operates predominantly in central London, which exposes it to some geographical risk.
Credit risk also arises from cash and cash equivalents and deposits with banks and financial institutions. While the Group seeks to diversify its exposure to bank counterparties and only deposits funds with independently rated financial institutions with a minimum rating grade, to the extent that the Group relies on such counterparties for operational or investment purposes, the Group is exposed to such counterparties defaulting which may have a negative impact on the Group's financial performance.
The availability and cost of financing has changed significantly in the past year and is a wider industry issue. Lenders are being more selective in terms of who they support and how much they lend with an impact upon liquidity. The Group has positive relationships with its lenders, and to date, has had positive discussions on refinancing.
A failure by the Group to raise finance in a cost-effective manner that optimises the capital structure of the Group could lead to a gradual rise in interest costs incurred as debt is refinanced with a consequent impact on earnings and interest cover.
Market risk arises for the Group from its use of variable interest bearing instruments. It is currently Group policy that generally between 60 per cent. and 85 per cent. of external Group borrowings (excluding finance lease payables) are at fixed rates and, as at 31 December 2024, the proportion of fixed debt held by the Group was within this range at 85 per cent. (31 December 2023: 98 per cent.). Where the Group wishes to vary the amount of external fixed rate debt it holds, the Group makes use of interest rate derivatives to achieve the desired interest rate profile. The Group also manages its cash flow interest rate risk by using floating-to-fixed interest rate swaps. The Group is therefore exposed to future cash flow fluctuation risks, due to changes in market interest rates. Although the Group's overall exposure to interest rate risks is low, sustained changes in interest rates may have an impact on the Group's financial results.
The Group has obligations to make payments on its indebtedness and to maintain the covenants required by its financing facilities. Liquidity risk is the risk that the Group will encounter difficulty in meeting its financial obligations as they fall due. This risk arises from the Group's management of its working capital and the finance charges and principal repayments on its debt instruments. If market or operating conditions deteriorate significantly, the Group may be unable to make payments on its indebtedness or it may breach its interest cover ratios (for example, if income falls or non-hedged interest rates rise significantly) or other financial covenants (for example, loan-to-value ratios may be breached if property valuations fall significantly).
While the Group's policy is to ensure that it will always have sufficient headroom in its loan facilities and to maintain committed facilities to meet the expected requirements (and as at 31 December 2024, the Group had cash and undrawn facilities of £487 million), a breach of the facilities could, subject to any applicable waiver or agreement, result in the facilities being withdrawn or becoming immediately repayable. This could require the Group to dispose of assets at significantly less than full value in order to make required payments. Any such breach, withdrawal, repayment, remedy or restriction could have an adverse impact on the Group's business, financial condition and/or results of operations in the longer term. Any cross-default provisions in the Group's financing facilities could magnify the effect of an individual default if such provisions were exercised by the Group's creditors.
In addition, the Group's obligation to make payments on its indebtedness and to maintain its covenants could limit its financial and operational flexibility. This could have an adverse impact on the Group's business, financial condition and/or results of operations.
The Group creates new properties and refurbishes existing properties with the aim of generating a substantial return on its investments. The Group's developments are large, high-value projects with life cycles that can be up to five years. The success of the Group's development activities is reliant on managing risk and delivering the office space occupiers desire when it is needed. The Group's development projects may not produce the targeted financial returns due to delays on-site, increased construction costs and interest rates, material and labour shortages, movement in yields or adverse letting conditions. Returns from the Group's developments may be adversely impacted due to delays or cost increases caused by main contractors or major subcontractors defaulting during the project. There have been ongoing issues within the construction industry in respect of the level of risk and narrow profit margins being accepted by contractors. Any delay in completing the development projects may result in significant financial penalties or a reduction in the Group's targeted financial returns.
Furthermore, the potential for the redevelopment, expansion, refurbishment and ongoing improvement of the Group's properties may be adversely affected by a number of factors, including constraints on location, required planning permissions and licences, consents and approvals and increased construction costs and capital expenditure required due to the age or condition of the property. Planning authorities have an increasing preference for refurbishment ahead of redevelopment.
If the Group fails to: (i) adequately appraise investments prior to starting work on-site, including through taking into account contingencies and inflationary cost increases; (ii) use a procurement process that is properly designed (to minimise uncertainty around costs) and that includes the use of highly regarded quantity surveyors; (iii) benchmark development costs; (iv) conduct thorough site investigations to reduce the risk of unidentified issues such as asbestos; (v) implement its pre-letting strategy; or (vi) conduct detailed reviews on construction projects to evaluate programme forecasts made by contractors, development projects may be significantly delayed.
If any of the foregoing risks negatively impact targeted financial returns, this could negatively impact rental returns or the value of the properties, which would in turn have a material adverse effect on the Group's business, financial condition, results of operation and prospects.
The Group outsources construction work to contractors. Due to the size of the Group's development projects, the Group tends to use principal contractors who manage underlying subcontractors. Due to the limited number of principal contractors, these companies face limited competition, which may lead to a risk of overreliance on particular contractors if not actively managed by the Group.
In addition, there is a risk that if the Group becomes overly reliant on a key contractor or supplier, the failure of that contractor or supplier could significantly delay the provision of critical services and development, as well as lead to increased costs for the Group. This could lead to a material adverse effect on the Group's operating performance and the overall financial position of the Group. In addition, the failure of a key contractor or supplier could lead to reputational damage for the Group, the consequences of which are described in detail at "Risk Factors – Reputational damage".
There have also been additional ongoing issues in respect of the level of risk and narrow profit margins being accepted by contractors, whereby returns from the Group's developments could be reduced due to delays and cost increases.
Further, any disputes with customers and other commercial parties could result in income decline, legal costs and diversion of management time. Disputes with the Group's principal contractors could potentially lead to project delays, increased costs and occupier penalty fees, which may in turn negatively impact the Group's performance.
Lease management is an important element of the Group's business and involves engaging with the Group's occupiers to expand their leased space or extend their leases. In any given year, a significant number of leases come up for renewal and the Group may be unable to re-let space to customers on favourable terms or at all or to realise any alternative use value for the property, which could have a material adverse effect on the Group's business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. Any required increase in capital expenditure may negatively affect the Group's targeted financial returns.
The valuation of the Group's properties is inherently uncertain due to, amongst other things, the individual nature of each property, its location and the expected future rental revenues from that particular property and the fact that the valuation of property is inherently a subjective exercise based on a range of assumptions and estimations which require professional judgement.
Valuers are required to make certain assumptions in determining market value, which may prove to be inaccurate. Incorrect assumptions or flawed assessments underlying a valuation report could negatively affect the Group's financial condition and potentially inhibit the Group's ability to realise a sale price that reflects the stated valuation. This is particularly so in periods of volatility or when there has been limited transactional evidence against which property valuations can be benchmarked. Further, if the Group acquires properties based on inaccurate valuations, the Group's net assets and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.
In accordance with IAS 40, the Group's properties are externally valued on a semi-annual basis and any increase or decrease in the value of its properties, after taking account of any capital expenditure or change in ownership, is recorded as a revaluation gain or loss in the relevant consolidated income statement for the period during which the revaluation occurs. As a result, the Group may have significant non-cash revenue gains and losses from periods to periods depending on changes in the fair market value of its properties, whether or not they are sold. A change in property values will also have an impact on the Group's net tangible assets (NTA) and gearing levels.
There can be no assurance that the valuations of the Group's current and prospective properties will be reflected in actual transaction prices, even where any such transactions occur shortly after the relevant valuation date, or that the estimated yield and estimated annual rental income will prove to be attainable. In addition, property valuations are dependent on the level of rental income receivable and anticipated to be receivable on that property in the future and, as such, declines in rental income could have an adverse impact on revenue and the value of the Group's properties. Any of the above factors could therefore have a negative impact on the Group's financial condition and results of operations as a result.
The Group may be subject to a cyber attack that results in it being unable to use its information systems and/or losing data. Such an attack could severely restrict the ability of the Group to operate, lead to an increase in costs and/or require a significant diversion of management time, and is at an increased risk given increasing geopolitical instability. Additionally, the Group is exposed to cyber attacks on its properties which may result in data breaches or significant disruption to IT-enabled tenant services. A major cyber attack against the Group or its properties could negatively impact the Group's business, reputation and operating results.
The Group is also subject to regulation regarding the use of private data relating to customers and employees, primarily pursuant to the UK Data Protection Act 2018 ("DPA") and the EU General Data Protection Regulation as it forms part of domestic law of the United Kingdom by virtue of the EUWA ("GDPR"), in each case, as amended by the Data Protection, Privacy and Electronic Communications (Amendments etc) (EU exit) Regulations 2019. In the ordinary course of business, the Group collects, stores and transmits confidential information, including as part of the operation of its Derwent London app. It is critical that the Group does so in a secure manner in order to maintain the integrity of such confidential information. Although the Group has policies and risk management controls in place to do this, there can be no assurance that the Group's efforts will prevent service interruptions or security breaches. A breach of the Group's security measures or the accidental loss, inadvertent disclosure, unapproved dissemination or misappropriation or misuse of trade secrets, proprietary information or other confidential information could lead to liability under the DPA and/or the GDPR and adversely affect the Group's business position. Further, any such interruption, security breach, loss or disclosure of confidential information could result in financial, legal, business, and reputational harm to the Group.
Major incidents may significantly interrupt the Group's business, its occupiers and/or supply chain. Such incidents could be caused by a wide range of events such as a pandemic outbreak, terrorism-related events, natural catastrophes or fires, cyber events, material supply chain failures or geopolitical factors, including continued geopolitical tensions. This could result in issues such as being unable to access or operate the Group's properties, tenant failures or reduced rental income, share price volatility or loss of key suppliers.
A stable geopolitical environment is important for businesses as it provides certainty and confidence when planning for the future. The geopolitical environment remains uncertain with continued impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East as well as volatility in US trade policies. Continued geopolitical tensions could cause prolonged global supply chain disruption, commodity price inflation, market uncertainty and deglobalisation.
Despite the uncertainty, the Group's supply chain has been relatively unaffected due to its approach of early pre-ordering and storage. Early supply chain engagement in project designs helps with the identification of potential risks and alternative solutions. However, there remains a risk of such geopolitical disruptions adversely affecting the Group's tenants' ability to successfully operate their businesses thereby potentially reducing occupancy rates of the Group's properties which may adversely impact the Group's overall financial position.
The Group has invested significantly in developing a well-regarded and respected brand. However, the Group's reputation may be damaged, for example, through unauthorised or inaccurate media coverage. Further, unfavourable incidents or unethical behaviour of the Group's executives, practices or failure to comply with relevant legislation could damage the Group's reputation. This could lead to a material adverse effect on the Group's operating performance and the overall financial position of the Group.
Should the Group breach any of the legislation that forms the regulatory framework within which the Group operates, the Group's cost base could increase and management time could be diverted. For example, a major health and safety incident could cause significant business interruption for the Group. This could be a local issue which impacts a small number of the Group's properties or, in the most extreme case, a wider issue which impacts the Group as a whole. Any breach of the legislation and regulations which apply to the Group could lead to reputational damage and/or loss of the Group's licence to operate.
With upgrades to internal systems, there is a risk that certain IT-related projects may not be successfully implemented or may fail to achieve the expected benefits. This could arise from various factors, including, but not limited to, unclear project scope and strategy, underestimation of required investment, insufficient project management and governance, inadequate management support, poor communication with stakeholders, and/or a lack of attention to stakeholder impact and change management processes.
In the event of project failure, the Group may incur higher costs, diversion of management resources, or inaccuracies in financial accounting and reporting. Depending on the nature of the project, such failure could also adversely affect the Group's broader stakeholders, such as through delayed payments or incorrect financial reporting, and could have a reputational impact.
With technology in the sector advancing at a rapid pace the Group needs to ensure it is embracing these changes sufficiently whilst making sure that the Group's strategy is driving which technology is adopted and not being driven by the technology itself. A failure to adopt technology could lead to the Group becoming less efficient than its competitors, leading to a loss of competitive advantage as described in "Risk factors – Failure to stay ahead of competition".
Buildings are increasingly becoming 'intelligent' and tenants may begin to choose such buildings over those without the same technological amenities. If the Group fails to respond to tenant demands for technology, the Group's office spaces could become less desirable, leading to potential vacancies and loss of rental income, as further described in "Risk Factors – Changing macroeconomic factors: income decline".
There is an increasing amount of regulation relating to the handling of environmental liabilities and health and safety matters, with substantial penalties for non-compliance. In addition, failure to identify, mitigate and/or react effectively to environmental liabilities could lead to delays to building projects and access restrictions to the Group's properties, both of which would result in loss of income and potential reputational damage to the Group. In addition, inadequate response to regulatory changes in respect of environmental liabilities could have a reputational impact.
There is a risk that the Group is unable to recruit, develop and retain staff and Directors with the right skills and experience to successfully implement its strategy. The sudden and/or unanticipated loss of the services of one or more members of the executive management team, or the inability to recruit and retain talented employees in key areas could adversely affect the Group's ability to implement its strategic goals, have an adverse impact on brand and reputation and lead to a loss of its knowledge base, thereby limiting the Group's growth strategy and income generation. This could have an adverse effect on the Group's business, financial condition and/or results of operations.
The Group's insurers exclude and limit liability both in amount and with respect to insured loss events. Losses of a catastrophic nature, such as those caused by acts of war, may be uninsurable. Insurance proceeds may be insufficient to repair a property due to the impact of inflation, changes in building codes and ordinances, environmental considerations and other factors, including acts of war. In these cases, the Group could be liable to repair damage. In addition, the Group would remain liable for any financial obligation related to the property.
There is a risk of accidents involving the public at premises owned by the Group. Should an accident attract publicity or be of a size and/or nature that is not adequately covered by insurance, the resulting publicity and/or costs could have an adverse impact on the Group's reputation, business, financial condition and results of operations. In such instance, the Group's ability to obtain public liability insurance cover in the future may also be adversely affected. In addition, following the Covid pandemic, all insurance policies contain exclusions relating to loss of income due to a future pandemic.
There can be no guarantee that the level of insurance cover for the Group now or in the future will be sufficient. No assurance can be given that material losses in excess of insurance proceeds will not occur in the future or that any insurance proceeds will be received at all. If such losses occur and are not covered by insurance and the Group has to make a payment, there could be an adverse effect on the Group's business, financial condition and/or results of operations.
Shortage of electrical power is a risk for London, particularly in West London. Shortage of electrical power could lead to power cuts and cost pressures. UK Power Networks (UKPN) consider power cuts as being possible but unlikely and will be driven by a combined impact of very cold weather and a reduction in power generated from wind farms due to lack of wind.
Climate-related risk may impact the Group's business through physical risks, in particular flooding, heat stress and subsidence, as well as more long-term risks as a result of climate change. If the Group fails to respond appropriately, or sufficiently, to climate change risks or fails to benefit from the potential opportunities, this could lead to damage to the Group's reputation, loss of income and/or property values and loss of the Group's licence to operate. Any of these consequences could ultimately adversely affect the Issuer's ability to meet its payment obligations under the Bonds.
There are a number of climate change transition risks that could lead to increased costs for the Group. Since the property industry is one of the highest contributors to the global carbon footprint, it could increasingly be targeted by new laws and guidance that seek to address the impact of climate change. The Group may need to devote increasing financial and human resources towards compliance with climate-related laws and guidance implemented by the UK Government and other bodies, for example the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting Scheme. Further, sustainability-linked disclosure requirements are evolving; numerous publications have been released which could require additional disclosures on our net zero carbon plans, for example the International Sustainability Standards Board (the "ISSB") (IFRS) Sustainability Disclosure Standards. It is likely that tougher minimum energy efficiency standards will be introduced in 2030 and the Group could be required to make additional investments in its portfolio to ensure compliance. In addition, there is a risk that the cost of construction materials and providing energy, water and other services to tenants will rise as a consequence of climate change. The Group could also be required to utilise low carbon materials. Furthermore, due to supply constraints, it is likely that the cost of high-quality carbon offsetting will continue to rise and there is a risk that the Group will be unable to sufficiently reduce its reliance on offsetting. Any of the above could lead to increased costs for the Group and have a material adverse effect on the Group's operating performance and the overall financial position of the Group. Non-compliance with, or liabilities under, existing or future environmental laws and regulations, including failure to hold the requisite permits or licences, could result in fines, penalties, third party claims and other costs that could have a material adverse effect on the Group's business, financial condition and/or results of operations.
The Group has publicly committed to being net zero carbon by 2030, publishing its pathway in 2020 to achieving this ambition. However, there can be no assurance that the Group succeeds in meeting this target. If the Group fails to meet the target, there could be an adverse impact on the Group's reputation, business and financial condition.
In the event that the Issuer would be obliged to increase the amounts payable in respect of any Bonds due to any withholding or deduction for or on account of, any present or future taxes, duties, assessments or governmental charges of whatever nature imposed, levied, collected, withheld or assessed by or on behalf of the UK or any political subdivision thereof or any authority therein or thereof having power to tax, the Issuer may redeem all outstanding Bonds in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Bonds (the "Conditions"). In addition, the Conditions provide that the Bonds are redeemable at the Issuer's option in certain other circumstances. An optional redemption feature is likely to limit the market value of the Bonds. During any period when the Issuer may elect to redeem the Bonds, the market value of the Bonds generally will not rise substantially above the price at which they can be redeemed.
If the Issuer redeems the Bonds in any of the circumstances mentioned above, there is a risk that the Bonds may be redeemed at times when the redemption proceeds are less than the current market value of the Bonds or when prevailing interest rates may be relatively low, in which latter case Bondholders may only be able to reinvest the redemption proceeds in securities with a lower yield. Potential investors should consider reinvestment risk in light of other investments available at that time.
As the Bonds have a denomination consisting of the minimum denomination plus a higher integral multiple of another smaller amount, it is possible that the Bonds may be traded in amounts in excess of £100,000 (or its equivalent) that are not integral multiples of £100,000 (or its equivalent). In such case a Bondholder who, as a result of trading such amounts, holds a principal amount of less than the minimum denomination may not receive a Definitive Bond in respect of such holding (should Definitive Bonds be printed) and would need to purchase a principal amount of Bonds such that its holding amounts to the minimum denomination. Further, a Bondholder who, as a result of trading such amounts, holds an amount which is less than the minimum denomination in his account with the relevant clearing system would not be able to sell the remainder of such holding without first purchasing a principal amount of Bonds at, or in excess of, the minimum denomination such that its holding amounts to the minimum denomination.
The Trust Deed contains provisions for calling meetings of Bondholders to consider matters affecting their interests generally. These provisions permit defined majorities to bind all holders of the Bonds, including Bondholders who did not attend and vote at the meeting and Bondholders who voted in a manner contrary to the majority. The Trust Deed constituting the Bonds also provides that the Trustee may (except as set out in the Trust Deed), without the consent of Bondholders, agree to certain modifications of, or to the waiver or authorisation of any breach or proposed breach of, any of the provisions of the Bonds or the Trust Deed or to the substitution of another company as principal debtor under the Bonds in place of the Issuer in the circumstances described in Condition 13 (Meeting of Bondholders; Modification and Waiver; Substitution) and the Trust Deed.
The Bonds are expected to be assigned a rating of A- by Fitch and may in the future be rated by additional independent credit rating agencies (including on an unsolicited basis), although the Issuer is under no obligation to ensure that the Bonds are rated by any credit rating agency. Credit ratings may not reflect the potential impact of all risks related to structure, market, additional factors discussed in these risk factors and other factors that may affect the liquidity or market value of the Bonds. A credit rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities and may be revised, suspended or withdrawn by the credit rating agency at any time.
If the Issuer determines to no longer maintain one or more credit ratings, if any other independent credit rating agency decides to assign a rating to the Bonds, or if any credit rating agency withdraws, suspends or downgrades any credit ratings of the Issuer or the Bonds, or if such a withdrawal, suspension or downgrade is anticipated (or any credit rating agency places the credit ratings of the Issuer or the Bonds on "credit watch" status in contemplation of a downgrade, suspension or withdrawal), such event could adversely affect the liquidity or market value of the Bonds.
In general, investors in the EEA are restricted under the EU CRA Regulation from using a credit rating for regulatory purposes, unless such rating is issued by a credit rating agency established in the EEA and registered under the EU CRA Regulation (and such registration has not been withdrawn or suspended, subject to transitional provisions that apply in certain circumstances). Such general restriction will also apply in the case of a credit rating issued by non-EEA credit rating agencies, unless the relevant credit rating is endorsed by an EEA-registered credit rating agency or the relevant third country rating agency is certified in accordance with the EU CRA Regulation (and such endorsement action or certification, as the case may be, has not been withdrawn or suspended, subject to transitional provisions that apply in certain circumstances).
Investors regulated in the UK are subject to similar restrictions under the UK CRA Regulation. As such, UK regulated investors are required to use for UK regulatory purposes ratings issued by a credit rating agency established in the UK and registered under the UK CRA Regulation. If the status of the rating agency rating the Bonds changes for the purpose of the EU CRA Regulation or the UK CRA Regulation, as applicable, EEA or UK regulated investors may no longer be able to use the rating for regulatory purposes in the EEA or the UK, as applicable, and the Bonds may have a different regulatory treatment. This may result in the relevant investors selling the Bonds which may impact the value of the Bonds and any secondary market.
Changes in law after the date hereof may affect the rights of Bondholders as well as the market value of the Bonds. Such changes in law may include changes in statutory, tax or regulatory regimes during the life of the Bonds, which may have an adverse effect on an investment in the Bonds.
In addition, any change in law or regulation that triggers a relevant tax change in the UK would entitle the Issuer, at its option (subject to certain conditions), to redeem the Bonds, in whole but not in part, as provided under Condition 6(b) (Redemption and Purchase – Redemption for tax reasons).
No assurance can be given as to the impact of any possible judicial decision or change to English law, regulation or administrative practice after the date of issue of the Bonds.
The Bonds are new securities which may not be widely distributed and for which there is currently no active trading market. If the Bonds are traded after their initial issuance, they may trade at a discount to their initial offering price, depending upon prevailing interest rates, the market for similar securities, general economic conditions and the financial condition of the Issuer. Although application has been for the Bonds to be admitted to listing on the Official List of the FCA and to trading on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, there is no assurance that an active trading market will develop. Accordingly, there is no assurance as to the development or liquidity of any trading market for the Bonds.
The Bonds will be represented by bonds in global form (the "Global Bonds") except in certain limited circumstances described in the Permanent Global Bond. The Global Bonds will be deposited with a common depositary for Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg. Except in certain limited circumstances described in the Permanent Global Bond, investors will not be entitled to receive Definitive Bonds. Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg will maintain records of the beneficial interests in the Global Bonds. While the Bonds are represented by the Global Bonds, investors will be able to trade their beneficial interests only through Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg.
The Issuer will discharge its payment obligations under the Bonds by making payments to or to the order of the common depositary for Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg for distribution to their account holders. A holder of a beneficial interest in a Global Bond must rely on the procedures of Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg to receive payments under the Bonds. The Issuer has no responsibility or liability for the records relating to, or payments made in respect of, beneficial interests in the Global Bonds.
Bondholders of beneficial interests in the Global Bonds will not have a direct right to vote in respect of the Bonds. Instead, such holders will be permitted to act only to the extent that they are enabled by Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg to appoint appropriate proxies.
The Issuer will pay principal and interest on the Bonds in pounds sterling. This presents certain risks relating to currency conversions if an investor's financial activities are denominated principally in a currency or currency unit (the "Investor's Currency") other than pounds sterling. These include the risk that exchange rates may significantly change (including changes due to devaluation of pounds sterling or revaluation of the Investor's Currency) and the risk that authorities with jurisdiction over the Investor's Currency may impose or modify exchange controls. An appreciation in the value of the Investor's Currency relative to pounds sterling would decrease: (i) the Investor's Currency-equivalent yield on the Bonds; (ii) the Investor's Currency-equivalent value of the principal payable on the Bonds; and (iii) the Investor's Currency-equivalent market value of the Bonds.
Government and monetary authorities may impose (as some have done in the past) exchange controls that could adversely affect an applicable exchange rate. As a result, investors may receive less interest or principal than expected, or no interest or principal.
Investment in the Bonds, which bear a fixed rate of interest, involves the risk that subsequent increases in market interest rates may adversely affect the market value of the Bonds.
The £250,000,000 5.250 per cent. Bonds due 2032 (the " Bonds", which expression includes any further bonds issued pursuant to Condition 15 (Further issues) and forming a single series therewith) of Derwent London plc (the "Issuer") are subject to, and have the benefit of, a trust deed dated on or about 4 June 2025 (as amended and/or restated and/or supplemented from time to time, the "Trust Deed"), between the Issuer and HSBC Corporate Trustee Company (UK) Limited as trustee (the "Trustee", which expression includes all persons for the time being trustee or trustees appointed under the Trust Deed) and are the subject of an agency agreement dated on or about 4 June 2025 (as amended and/or restated and/or supplemented from time to time, the "Agency Agreement"), between the Issuer, HSBC Bank plc as principal paying agent (the "Principal Paying Agent", which expression includes any successor principal paying agent appointed from time to time in connection with the Bonds), the paying agents named therein (together with the Principal Paying Agent, the "Paying Agents", which expression includes any successor or additional paying agents appointed from time to time in connection with the Bonds) and the Trustee.
Certain provisions of these Conditions are summaries of the Trust Deed and the Agency Agreement and are subject to their detailed provisions and definitions. The holders of the Bonds (the "Bondholders") and the holders of the related interest coupons (the "Couponholders" and the "Coupons", respectively) are bound by, and are deemed to have notice of, all the provisions of the Trust Deed and the Agency Agreement applicable to them. Copies of the Trust Deed and the Agency Agreement are available for inspection by Bondholders during normal business hours at the registered office for the time being of the Trustee, being at the date hereof 8 Canada Square, London, E14 5HQ and at the Specified Offices (as defined in the Agency Agreement) of each of the Paying Agents, the initial Specified Offices of which are set out in the Agency Agreement.
The Bonds are serially numbered and in bearer form in the denominations of £100,000 and integral multiples of £1,000 in excess thereof up to and including £199,000, with Coupons attached at the time of issue. Title to the Bonds and the Coupons will pass by delivery. The holder of any Bond or Coupon shall (except as otherwise required by law) be treated as its absolute owner for all purposes (whether or not it is overdue and regardless of any notice of ownership, trust or any other interest therein, any writing thereon or any notice of any previous loss or theft thereof) and no person shall be liable for so treating such holder. No person shall have any right to enforce any term or condition of the Bonds or the Trust Deed under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.
The Bonds constitute direct, general and unconditional obligations of the Issuer which will at all times rank pari passu among themselves and at least pari passu with all other present and future unsecured obligations of the Issuer, save for such obligations as may be preferred by provisions of law that are both mandatory and of general application.
So long as any Bond remains outstanding (as defined in the Trust Deed):
unless, at the same time or prior thereto, the obligations of the Issuer under the Bonds and the Trust Deed (1) are secured equally and rateably therewith or benefit from a guarantee or indemnity in substantially identical terms thereto, as the case may be, or (2) have the benefit of such other security, guarantee, indemnity or other arrangement as the Trustee in its absolute discretion shall deem to be not materially less beneficial to the Bondholders or as shall be approved by an Extraordinary Resolution (as defined in the Trust Deed) of the Bondholders, provided that there may be permitted to subsist (without the obligation to accord to the Bonds an equivalent Security or ensure the Bonds benefit from a guarantee or indemnity as aforesaid) (x) any Security in respect of any Relevant Debt where such Security is subsisting over undertakings or assets acquired after, or is provided by or subsisting in respect of a company becoming a Subsidiary of the Issuer after 22 May 2025 and where such Security exists at the time of such acquisition or at the time that company becomes a Subsidiary of the Issuer (provided that such Security was not created in contemplation of such acquisition or that company becoming a Subsidiary of the Issuer and the principal amount of the Relevant Debt secured at the time of that company becoming a Subsidiary of the Issuer is not subsequently increased) and any Security over the same undertaking or assets or provided by or subsisting in respect of that company for the purpose of and to the extent of the refinancing of such Relevant Debt and (y) any Security, whether or not existing at the Issue Date, in respect of London Merchant Securities plc's £175,000,000 Secured Bonds due 2026 (the "Secured Bonds") (provided that the principal amount thereof is not increased) or any refinancing thereof (up to a principal amount of £175,000,000) and (z) any Security securing any other Relevant Debt where, immediately following the grant of such Security, there would be no breach of the financial covenant described in paragraph (c) of Condition 4 (Financial Covenants) below.
"Group" means the Issuer and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole;
"Relevant Debt" means any indebtedness for borrowed money in the form of, or represented by, bonds, notes, debentures, loan stock or other securities which are, or are capable of being, quoted, listed, dealt in or traded on any stock exchange or other securities market (whether or not initially distributed by way of public offer, private placement, acquisition consideration or otherwise); and
"Subsidiary" means a subsidiary of the Issuer within the meaning provided in Section 1159 of the Companies Act.
For so long as any Bond remains outstanding (as defined in the Trust Deed) the Issuer shall ensure that:
For so long as any Bond remains outstanding, the Issuer will: (i) deliver to the Trustee within 180 days of each Testing Date: (A) a compliance certificate signed by two authorised signatories of the Issuer, certifying that the Issuer is and has been in compliance with the covenants set out in this Condition 4 at all times during the Measurement Period; and (B): (1) in respect of a Testing Date which falls on 31 December of a given year, a copy of the Group's most recent Full-Year Financial Statements; or (2) in respect of a Testing Date which falls on 30 June of a given year, a copy of the Group's most recent Half-Year Financial Statements; and (ii) within 120 days of each Testing Date which falls on 31 December and 90 days of each Testing Date which falls on 30 June, make a copy of the most recent Full-Year Financial Statements or Half-Year Financial Statements (as applicable) available to Bondholders on an investor relations website relating to the Group.
Any certificate provided to the Trustee pursuant to limb (i) above may be relied on by the Trustee without further enquiry or evidence and, if relied upon by the Trustee, shall, in the absence of manifest error, be conclusive and binding on all parties.
In these Conditions:
"Acceptable Bank" means a bank or financial institution which has a rating for its long-term unsecured and non credit-enhanced debt obligations of A or higher by Standard & Poor's Rating Services or Fitch Ratings Ltd or A2 or higher by Moody's Investors Service Limited or a comparable rating from an internationally recognised credit rating agency;
"Accounting Principles" means generally accepted accounting principles in the United Kingdom including International Financial Reporting Standards;
"Adjusted Net Asset Value" means on the last day of a Measurement Period, the net asset value of the Group (as stated in the most recent Full-Year Financial Statements or Half-Year Financial Statements (as applicable)), less any minority interests and after adjusting for:
but deducting:
and so that no amount shall be included or excluded more than once;
"Borrowings" means, at any time, the aggregate outstanding principal, capital or nominal amount (and any fixed or minimum premium payable on prepayment or redemption) of any indebtedness of members of the Group for or in respect of:
"Cash" means, at any time, cash denominated in sterling in hand or at bank and (in the latter case) credited to an account in the name of the Issuer with an Acceptable Bank and to which the Issuer is alone beneficially entitled and for so long as:
"Cash Equivalent Investments" means at any time:
in each case, denominated in sterling and to which the Issuer is beneficially entitled at that time and which is not issued or guaranteed by any member of the Group or subject to any Security;
"Finance Charges" means, for any Measurement Period, the aggregate amount of the accrued interest, commission, fees or other finance payments which are regular or periodic in nature in respect of Borrowings whether paid, payable or capitalised by any member of the Group (calculated on a consolidated basis) or the Group's share of such amounts paid, payable or capitalised by any Joint Venture in respect of that Measurement Period:
and so that (i) no amount shall be added or deducted more than once and (ii) in the case of a Joint Venture only the Group's share of the relevant amount shall be added (or deducted);
"Finance Lease" means any lease which would be classified as a "finance lease" under the Accounting Principles applicable immediately prior to International Financial Reporting Standard 16 (Leases) taking effect on 1 January 2019;
"Full-Year Financial Statements" means the audited annual consolidated financial statements of the Issuer;
"Gearing" means the ratio of Total Net Debt to Adjusted Net Asset Value;
"Group's share" means the Group's proportionate ownership interest in the relevant Joint Venture;
"Half-Year Financial Statements" means the unaudited condensed consolidated interim half-yearly financial statements of the Issuer;
"International Financial Reporting Standards" means UK-adopted international accounting standards as applied in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006;
"Interest Cover" means the ratio of Rental Income to Net Finance Charges in respect of any Measurement Period;
"Joint Venture" means any joint venture entity, whether a company, unincorporated firm, undertaking, association, joint venture or partnership or any other entity in which the Issuer does not hold (directly or indirectly) more than 50 per cent. of the voting rights or paid up share capital;
"Measurement Period" means the period of 12 months ending on the relevant Testing Date (and the first Measurement Period shall be in respect of the 12-month period ending on 31 December 2024);
"Net Finance Charges" means, for any Measurement Period, the Finance Charges for that Measurement Period after deducting any interest payable in that Measurement Period on any Cash or Cash Equivalent Investment of any member of the Group and the Group's share of any interest payable in that Measurement Period on any Cash or Cash Equivalent Investment of any Joint Venture;
"Priority Debt" means, the ratio of Secured Debt to Adjusted Net Asset Value;
"Rental Income" means, for any Measurement Period:
each as stated in the most recent Full-Year Financial Statements or Half-Year Financial Statements (as applicable);
"Secured Debt" means Borrowings with respect to which a member of the Group has created Security including any agreement or arrangement under which any person:
in circumstances where the arrangement or transaction is entered into primarily for the purpose of securing any Borrowings (any such agreement or arrangement detailed at (a) or (b) above being "Quasi-Security") but excluding any Third Party Secured Debt;
"Testing Date" means 30 June and 31 December of each year;
"Third Party Secured Debt" means, in respect of the Borrowings (in respect of which Security or Quasi-Security has been created) of a Subsidiary in which any person who is not a member of the Group (a "Third Party") holds voting rights, an amount equal to the proportion of such secured Borrowings that is attributable to such Third Party (such amount being a proportion of such secured Borrowings which is equal to the percentage voting rights represented by that Third Party's shareholding in the Subsidiary), where the recourse of the creditors in respect of such secured Borrowings is limited to the assets of such Subsidiary (excluding any shares held in a member of the Group);
"Third Party Unsecured Debt" means, in respect of the Borrowings (in respect of which no Security or Quasi-Security has been created) of a Subsidiary in which any Third Party holds voting rights, an amount equal to the proportion of such Borrowings that is attributable to such Third Party (such amount being a proportion of such Borrowings which is equal to the percentage voting rights represented by that Third Party's shareholding in the Subsidiary), where the recourse of the creditors in respect of such Borrowings is limited to the assets of such Subsidiary (excluding any shares held in a member of the Group); and
"Total Net Debt" means, at any time, the aggregate amount of all obligations of members of the Group for or in respect of Borrowings at that time but:
and so that no amount shall be included or excluded more than once.
The Bonds bear interest from (and including) the Issue Date at the rate of 5.250 per cent. per annum, (the "Rate of Interest") payable semi-annually in arrear on 30 May and 30 November in each year (each, an "Interest Payment Date"), subject as provided in Condition 7 (Payments). The first payment of
interest shall be made on 30 November 2025 (also, an "Interest Payment Date") in respect of the period from (and including) the Issue Date to (but excluding) such Interest Payment Date.
Each Bond will cease to bear interest from the due date for redemption unless, upon due presentation, payment of principal is improperly withheld or refused, in which case it will continue to bear interest at such rate (both before and after judgment) until whichever is the earlier of: (a) the day on which all sums due in respect of such Bond up to that day are received by or on behalf of the relevant Bondholder; and (b) the day which is seven days after the Principal Paying Agent or the Trustee has notified the Bondholders that it has received all sums due in respect of the Bonds up to such seventh day (except to the extent that there is any subsequent default in payment).
The amount of interest payable on the first Interest Payment Date shall be £25.54 in respect of each Calculation Amount and the interest payable on each regular Interest Payment Date shall be £26.25 in respect of each Calculation Amount. If interest is required to be paid in respect of a Bond on any other date, or in respect of a Bond with any other denomination, it shall be calculated by applying the Rate of Interest to the Calculation Amount, multiplying the product by the relevant Day Count Fraction, rounding the resulting figure to the nearest penny (half a penny being rounded upwards) and multiplying such rounded figure by a fraction equal to the denomination of such Bond divided by the Calculation Amount, where:
"Day Count Fraction" means, in respect of any period, (a) the number of days in the relevant period, from (and including) the first day in such period to (but excluding) the last day in such period, divided by (b) the product of (x) the number of days in the Regular Period in which the relevant period falls and (y) two; and
"Regular Period" means each period from (and including) the Issue Date or any Interest Payment Date to (but excluding) the next Interest Payment Date.
provided, however, that no such notice of redemption shall be given earlier than 90 days prior to the earliest date on which the Issuer would be obliged to pay such additional amounts if a payment in respect of the Bonds were then due.
Prior to the publication of any notice of redemption pursuant to this paragraph, the Issuer shall deliver or procure that there is delivered to the Trustee:
(A) a certificate signed by two authorised signatories of the Issuer stating that the circumstances referred to in (i) and (ii) above prevail and setting out the material details of such circumstances; and
(B) if required by the Trustee, an opinion in form and substance satisfactory to the Trustee of legal advisers of recognised standing to the effect that the Issuer has or will become obliged to pay such additional amounts as a result of such change or amendment.
The Trustee shall be entitled to accept (without further enquiry) such certificate and opinion as sufficient evidence of the satisfaction of the circumstances set out in (i) and (ii) above, in which event they shall be conclusive and binding on the Bondholders.
Upon the expiry of any such notice as is referred to in this Condition 6(b) (Redemption for tax reasons), the Issuer shall be bound to redeem the Bonds in accordance with this Condition 6(b) (Redemption for tax reasons).
Any notice of redemption given under this Condition 6(c) (Redemption at the option of the Issuer) will override any notice of redemption given (whether previously, on the same date or subsequently) under Condition 6(b) (Redemption for tax reasons). No notice of redemption may be given under this Condition 6(c) (Redemption at the option of the Issuer) where the Optional Redemption Date would fall during a Change of Control Put Period (as defined in Condition 6(d) (Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control) below).
In these Conditions:
"Determination Date" means the date which is the second business day in London prior to the Optional Redemption Date; and
"Gross Redemption Yield" means a yield calculated by the Financial Adviser on the basis set out by the United Kingdom Debt Management Office in the paper "Formulae for Calculating Gilt Prices from Yields" page 5, Section One: Price/Yield Formulae (Conventional Gilts; Double-dated and Undated Gilts with Assumed (or Actual) Redemption on a Quasi-Coupon Date) (published on 8 June 1998 and updated on 15 January 2002 and 16 March 2005) (as amended or supplemented from time to time).
(d) Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control:
(i) any person or any persons acting in concert (as defined in the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers), other than a holding company (as defined in section 1159 of the Companies Act 2006, as amended) whose shareholders are or are to be substantially the same as the pre-existing shareholders of the Issuer, becomes interested (within the meaning of Part 22 of the Companies Act 2006, as amended) in: (A) more than 50 per cent. of the issued or allotted ordinary share capital of the Issuer; or (B) shares in the capital of the Issuer carrying more than 50 per cent. of the voting rights normally exercisable on a poll vote at a general meeting of the Issuer (such event being, a "Change of Control");
provided that, if on the Relevant Announcement Date the Bonds carry a credit rating from more than one Rating Agency, at least one of which is an Investment Grade Rating, then only sub-paragraph (A) above will apply; and
(iii) in making any decision to downgrade or withdraw a credit rating pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of sub-paragraph (ii) above, or not to award a credit rating of at least an Investment Grade Rating as described in sub-paragraph (C) of sub-paragraph (ii) above, the relevant Rating Agency announces publicly or confirms in writing to the Issuer that such decision(s) resulted, in whole or in part, from the relevant Change of Control.
If a Change of Control Put Event occurs, the holder of each Bond will have the option (a "Change of Control Put Option") (unless prior to the giving of the relevant Change of Control Put Event Notice (as defined below) the Issuer has given notice of redemption under Condition 6(b) (Redemption for tax reasons) above) to require the Issuer to redeem or, at the Issuer's option, purchase (or procure the purchase of) that Bond on the date (the "Change of Control Put Date") which is seven days after the expiration of the Change of Control Put Period (as
defined below) at its principal amount together with (or, where purchased, together with an amount equal to) interest accrued to (but excluding) the Change of Control Put Date.
Promptly upon, and in any event within 14 days after, the Issuer becoming aware that a Change of Control Put Event has occurred, the Issuer shall, and at any time upon the Trustee having express notice thereof, and if so requested by the holders of at least one-quarter in aggregate of the principal amount of the Bonds then outstanding or if so directed by an Extraordinary Resolution of the Bondholders, the Trustee shall (subject in each case to the Trustee being indemnified and/or secured and/or prefunded to its satisfaction), give notice (a "Change of Control Put Event Notice") to the Bondholders (and the Trustee, where such Change of Control Put Notice is given by the Issuer) in accordance with Condition 16 (Notices) specifying the nature of the Change of Control Put Event and the procedure for exercising the Change of Control Put Option.
To exercise the Change of Control Put Option, the holder of the Bond must deposit such Bond with any Paying Agent at its Specified Office at any time during its normal business hours within 90 days after a Change of Control Put Event Notice is given (the "Change of Control Put Period"), accompanied by a duly signed and completed notice of exercise in the form (for the time being current) obtainable from the Specified Office of any Paying Agent (a "Change of Control Put Notice"). No Bond so deposited and option so exercised may be withdrawn (except as provided in the Agency Agreement) without the prior consent of the Issuer. Any such Bond should be delivered together with all Coupons appertaining thereto maturing after the Change of Control Put Date, failing which the relevant Paying Agent will require payment from or on behalf of the Bondholder of an amount equal to the face value of any such missing Coupon. Any amount so paid will be reimbursed to the Bondholder against presentation and surrender of the relevant missing Coupon (or any replacement therefor issued pursuant to Condition 11 (Replacement of Bonds and Coupons)) at any time after such payment, but before the expiry of the period of five years from the date on which such Coupon would have become due, but not thereafter. The Paying Agent to which such Bond and Change of Control Put Notice are delivered will issue to the Bondholder concerned a non-transferable receipt in respect of the Bond so delivered. Payment in respect of any Bond so delivered will be made, if the holder duly specified a bank account in the Change of Control Put Notice to which payment is to be made, on the Change of Control Put Date by transfer to that bank account and, in every other case, on or after the Change of Control Put Date against presentation and surrender or (as the case may be) endorsement of such receipt at the Specified Office of any Paying Agent. A Change of Control Put Notice, once given, shall be irrevocable. The Issuer shall redeem or purchase (or procure the purchase of) the relevant Bonds on the Change of Control Put Date unless previously redeemed (or purchased) and cancelled.
If 80 per cent. or more in principal amount of the Bonds then outstanding have been redeemed or purchased pursuant to this Condition 6(d) (Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control), the Issuer may, on giving not less than 30 nor more than 60 days' notice to the Bondholders (such notice being given within 30 days after the Change of Control Put Date), redeem or purchase (or procure the purchase of), at its option, all but not some only of the remaining outstanding Bonds at their principal amount, together with interest accrued to (but excluding) the date fixed for such redemption or purchase.
If the rating designations employed by Moody's, Fitch or S&P are changed from those which are described in paragraph (ii) of the definition of "Change of Control Put Event" above, or if a rating is procured from a Substitute Rating Agency (as defined below), the Issuer shall determine the rating designations of Moody's and/or Fitch and/or S&P and/or such Substitute Rating Agency, as applicable, as are most equivalent to the prior rating designations of Moody's, Fitch, and/or S&P, as the case may be, and this Condition 6(d) (Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control) shall hence be construed accordingly.
The Trustee is under no obligation to ascertain or monitor whether a Change of Control Put Event or Change of Control or Negative Rating Event or any event which could lead to the occurrence of or could constitute a Change of Control Put Event or Change of Control or Negative Rating Event has occurred, or to seek any confirmation relating to a decision of any Rating Agency pursuant to paragraph (iii) above and, until it shall have express notice pursuant to the Trust Deed to the contrary, the Trustee shall be entitled to assume that no Change of
Control Put Event or Change of Control or Negative Rating Event or other such event has occurred and shall have no liability to the Bondholders or any other person in respect thereof.
In these Conditions:
"Change of Control Period" means the period commencing on the Relevant Announcement Date and ending 90 days after the relevant Change of Control (both dates inclusive) (or such longer period for which the Bonds are under consideration (such consideration having been announced publicly within the period ending 90 days after the Change of Control) for rating review or, as the case may be, rating by a Rating Agency, such period not to exceed 60 days after the first public announcement of such consideration);
"Rating Agency" means Moody's Investors Service, Limited ("Moody's"), Fitch Ratings Ltd. ("Fitch") or S&P Global Ratings UK Limited ("S&P") or any of their respective successors or any other internationally recognised rating agency (a "Substitute Rating Agency") substituted for any of them by the Issuer from time to time; and
"Relevant Potential Change of Control Announcement" means any public announcement or statement by the Group, any actual or potential bidder or any adviser thereto relating to any potential Change of Control where, within 180 days following the date of such announcement or statement, a Change of Control occurs.
commissions or expenses shall be charged to the Bondholders or Couponholders in respect of such payments.
Each sum of principal so deducted shall be paid in the manner provided in paragraph (a) (Principal) above against presentation and (provided that payment is made in full) surrender of the relevant missing Coupons. No payments will be made in respect of void coupons.
All payments of principal and interest in respect of the Bonds and the Coupons by or on behalf of the Issuer shall be made free and clear of, and without withholding or deduction for or on account of, any present or future taxes, duties, assessments or governmental charges of whatever nature imposed, levied, collected, withheld or assessed by or on behalf of the United Kingdom or any political subdivision thereof or any authority therein or thereof having power to tax, unless the withholding or deduction of such taxes, duties, assessments or governmental charges is required by law. In the event that any such withholding or deduction is required to be made, the Issuer shall pay such additional amounts as will result in receipt by the Bondholders and the Couponholders after such withholding or deduction of such amounts as would have been received by them had no such withholding or deduction been required, except that no such additional amounts shall be payable in respect of any Bond or Coupon presented for payment:
In these Conditions, "Relevant Date" means whichever is the later of: (a) the date on which the payment in question first becomes due; and (b) if the full amount payable has not been received in London by the Principal Paying Agent or the Trustee on or prior to such due date, the date on which (the full amount having been so received) notice to that effect has been given to the Bondholders.
Any reference in these Conditions to principal or interest shall be deemed to include any additional amounts in respect of principal or interest (as the case may be) which may be payable under this Condition 8 (Taxation) or any undertaking given in addition to or in substitution of this Condition 8 (Taxation) pursuant to the Trust Deed.
If the Issuer becomes subject at any time to any taxing jurisdiction other than the United Kingdom, references in these Conditions to the United Kingdom shall be construed as references to the United Kingdom and/or such other jurisdiction.
If any of the following events occurs, then the Trustee at its discretion may and, if so requested in writing by holders of at least one quarter of the aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Bonds or if so directed by an Extraordinary Resolution, shall (subject, in the case of the happening of any of the events mentioned in paragraphs (b) (Breach of other obligations) below and, in relation only to a Principal Subsidiary of the Issuer, paragraphs (d) (Enforcement Proceedings), (e) (Security enforced), (f) (Insolvency), or (g) (Winding up) below, to the Trustee having certified in writing that the happening of such event is in its opinion materially prejudicial to the interests of the Bondholders and, in all cases, to the Trustee having been indemnified and/or provided with security and/or prefunded to its satisfaction) give written notice to the Issuer declaring the Bonds to be immediately due and payable, whereupon they shall become immediately due and payable at their principal amount together with accrued interest without further action or formality:
of the Trustee, capable of remedy remains un-remedied for 30 days (or such period as the Trustee may require) after the Trustee has given written notice thereof to the Issuer requiring the same to be remedied; or
provided that no such event shall constitute an Event of Default unless the relevant indebtedness or relevant guarantee of or indemnity in respect of indebtedness either alone or when aggregated with all other indebtedness or guarantees of or indemnities in respect of indebtedness (if any) in respect of which such events have occurred shall equal or exceed £25,000,000 or its equivalent in any other currency or currencies; or
In these Conditions:
"Principal Subsidiary" means, at any time:
A certificate signed by two directors of the Issuer that in their opinion a Subsidiary of the Issuer is or is not, or was or was not, at any particular time or throughout any specified period a Principal Subsidiary shall, in the absence of manifest error, be conclusive and binding on the Trustee and the Bondholders and the Trustee shall be entitled to rely on such certificate without liability to any person.
Claims for principal shall become void unless the relevant Bonds are presented for payment within ten years of the appropriate Relevant Date. Claims for interest shall become void unless the relevant Coupons are presented for payment within five years of the appropriate Relevant Date.
If any Bond or Coupon is lost, stolen, mutilated, defaced or destroyed, it may be replaced at the Specified Office of the Principal Paying Agent, subject to all applicable laws and stock exchange requirements, upon payment by the claimant of the expenses incurred in connection with such replacement and on such terms as to evidence, security, indemnity and otherwise as the Issuer or the Principal Paying Agent may reasonably require. Mutilated or defaced Bonds or Coupons must be surrendered before replacements will be issued.
Under the Trust Deed, the Trustee is entitled to be indemnified and relieved from responsibility in certain circumstances and to be paid its costs and expenses in priority to the claims of the Bondholders. In addition, the Trustee is entitled to enter into business transactions with the Issuer and any entity relating to the Issuer without accounting for any profit.
In the exercise of its powers and discretions under these Conditions and the Trust Deed, the Trustee will have regard to the interests of the Bondholders as a class and will not be responsible for any consequence for individual holders of Bonds or Coupons as a result of such holders being connected in any way with a particular territory or taxing jurisdiction.
In acting under the Agency Agreement and in connection with the Bonds and the Coupons, the Paying Agents act solely as agents of the Issuer and (to the extent provided therein) the Trustee and do not assume any obligations towards or relationship of agency or trust for or with any of the Bondholders or Couponholders.
The initial Paying Agents and their initial Specified Offices are listed in the Agency Agreement. The Issuer reserves the right (with the prior approval of the Trustee) at any time to vary or terminate the appointment of any Paying Agent and to appoint a successor principal paying agent and additional or successor paying agents; provided, however, that the Issuer shall at all times maintain a principal paying agent.
Notice of any change in any of the Paying Agents or in their Specified Offices shall promptly be given to the Bondholders.
(a) Meetings of Bondholders: The Trust Deed contains provisions for convening meetings of Bondholders to consider matters relating to the Bonds, including the modification of any provision of these Conditions or the Trust Deed. Any such modification may be made if sanctioned by an Extraordinary Resolution. Such a meeting may be convened by the Issuer or by the Trustee and shall be convened by the Trustee (subject to it being indemnified and/or secured and/or prefunded to its satisfaction) upon the request in writing of Bondholders holding not less than one-tenth of the aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Bonds. The quorum at any meeting convened to vote on an Extraordinary Resolution will be two or more persons holding or representing not less than half of the aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Bonds or, at any adjourned meeting, two or more persons being or representing Bondholders whatever the principal amount of the Bonds held or represented; provided, however, that certain proposals (including any proposal to change any date fixed for payment of principal or interest in respect of the Bonds, to reduce the amount of principal or interest payable on any date in respect of the Bonds, to alter the method of calculating the amount of any payment in respect of the Bonds or the date for any such payment, to modify any provision of any guarantee of the Bonds given pursuant to the Trust Deed, to change the currency of payments under the Bonds or to change the quorum requirements relating to meetings or the majority required to pass an Extraordinary Resolution (each, a "Reserved Matter")) may only be sanctioned by an Extraordinary Resolution passed at a meeting of Bondholders at which two or more persons holding or representing not less than three-quarters or, at any adjourned meeting, one quarter of the aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Bonds form a quorum. Any Extraordinary Resolution duly passed at any such meeting shall be binding on all the Bondholders and Couponholders, whether present or not.
In addition, a resolution in writing signed by or on behalf of Bondholders, who for the time being are entitled to receive notice of a meeting of Bondholders under the Trust Deed, holding in aggregate not less than 75 per cent. in nominal amount of the Bonds outstanding, will take effect as if it were an Extraordinary Resolution. Such a resolution in writing may be contained in one document or several documents in the same form, each signed by or on behalf of one or more Bondholders.
(b) Modification and waiver: The Trustee may, without the consent of the Bondholders or the Couponholders, agree to any modification of these Conditions, the Bonds, the Coupons, the Trust Deed or the Agency Agreement (other than in respect of a Reserved Matter) which is, in the opinion of the Trustee, proper to make if, in the opinion of the Trustee, such modification will not be materially prejudicial to the interests of Bondholders and to any modification of the Conditions, the Bonds, the Coupons or the Trust Deed or the Agency Agreement which is of a formal, minor or technical nature or is to correct a manifest error. In addition, the Trustee may, without the consent of the Bondholders or the Couponholders, authorise or waive any proposed breach or breach of the Conditions, the Bonds, the Coupons, the Trust Deed or the Agency Agreement or determine that any Event of Default or Potential Event of Default shall not be treated as such (other than relating to the subject of a Reserved Matter) if, in the opinion of the Trustee, the interests of the Bondholders will not be materially prejudiced thereby.
No Bondholder or Couponholder shall, in connection with any substitution, be entitled to claim any indemnification or payment in respect of any tax consequence thereof for such Bondholder or (as the case may be) Couponholder except to the extent provided for in Condition 8 (Taxation) (or any undertaking given in addition to or substitution for it pursuant to the provisions of the Trust Deed).
The Trustee may at any time, at its discretion and without notice, institute such proceedings as it thinks fit to enforce its rights under the Trust Deed in respect of the Bonds, but it shall not be bound to do so unless:
No Bondholder may proceed directly against the Issuer unless the Trustee, having become bound to do so, fails to do so within a reasonable time and such failure is continuing.
The Issuer may from time to time, without the consent of the Bondholders or the Couponholders and in accordance with the Trust Deed, create and issue further bonds having the same terms and conditions as the Bonds in all respects (or in all respects except for the issue date and first payment of interest) so as to form a single series with the Bonds. The Issuer may from time to time, with the consent of the Trustee, create and issue other series of bonds having the benefit of the Trust Deed.
All notices to Bondholders will be valid if published in a leading English language daily newspaper published in London (which is expected to be the Financial Times) or, if such publication is not practicable, in a leading English language daily newspaper having general circulation in the United Kingdom. Any such notice shall be deemed to have been given on the date of first publication. Couponholders shall be deemed for all purposes to have notice of the contents of any notice given to the Bondholders.
The Bonds will initially be in the form of a Temporary Global Bond which will be deposited on or around the Closing Date with a common depositary for Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg.
The Temporary Global Bond will be exchangeable in whole or in part for interests in the Permanent Global Bond not earlier than 40 days after the Closing Date upon certification as to non-U.S. beneficial ownership. No payments will be made under the Temporary Global Bond unless exchange for interests in the Permanent Global Bond is improperly withheld or refused. In addition, interest payments in respect of the Bonds cannot be collected without such certification of non-U.S. beneficial ownership.
The Permanent Global Bond will become exchangeable in whole, but not in part, for Definitive Bonds in the denominations of £100,000 and higher integral multiples of £1,000 in excess thereof up to and including £199,000 each at the request of the bearer of the Permanent Global Bond against presentation and surrender of the Permanent Global Bond to the Principal Paying Agent if either of the following events (each, an "Exchange Event") occurs: (a) Euroclear or Clearstream, Luxembourg is closed for business for a continuous period of 14 days (other than by reason of legal holidays) or announces an intention permanently to cease business; or (b) any of the circumstances described in Condition 9 (Events of Default) occurs. No Definitive Bonds will be issued with a denomination above £199,000.
So long as the Bonds are represented by a Temporary Global Bond or a Permanent Global Bond and the relevant clearing system(s) so permit, the Bonds will be tradeable only in the minimum authorised denomination of £100,000 and higher integral multiples of £1,000, notwithstanding that no Definitive Bonds will be issued with a denomination above £199,000.
Whenever the Permanent Global Bond is to be exchanged for Definitive Bonds, the Issuer shall procure the prompt delivery (free of charge to the bearer) of such Definitive Bonds, duly authenticated and with Coupons attached, in an aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of the Permanent Global Bond to the bearer of the Permanent Global Bond against the surrender of the Permanent Global Bond to or to the order of the Principal Paying Agent within 30 days of the occurrence of the relevant Exchange Event.
In addition, the Temporary Global Bond and the Permanent Global Bond will contain provisions which modify the Conditions as they apply to the Temporary Global Bond and the Permanent Global Bond. The following is a summary of certain of those provisions:
Payments: All payments in respect of the Temporary Global Bond and the Permanent Global Bond will be made against presentation and (in the case of payment of principal in full with all interest accrued thereon) surrender of the Temporary Global Bond or (as the case may be) the Permanent Global Bond to or to the order of any Paying Agent and will be effective to satisfy and discharge the corresponding liabilities of the Issuer in respect of the Bonds. On each occasion on which a payment of principal or interest is made in respect of the Temporary Global Bond or (as the case may be) Permanent Global Bond, the Issuer shall procure that the payment is noted in a schedule thereto.
Payments on business days: In the case of all payments made in respect of the Temporary Global Bond and the Permanent Global Bond, "business day" means any day which is a day on which dealings in foreign currencies may be carried on in London.
Exercise of put option: In order to exercise the option contained in Condition 6(d) (Redemption at the option of Bondholders following a Change of Control) the bearer of the Permanent Global Bond must, within the period specified in the Conditions for the deposit of the Bond and put notice, give written notice of such exercise to the Principal Paying Agent, in accordance with the rules and procedures of Euroclear, Clearstream, Luxembourg and/or other relevant clearing system, specifying the principal amount of Bonds in respect of which such option is being exercised. Any such notice will be irrevocable and may not be withdrawn.
Partial exercise of call option: In connection with an exercise of the option contained in Condition 6(c) (Redemption at the option of the Issuer) in relation to some only of the Bonds, the Permanent Global Bond may be redeemed in part in the principal amount specified by the Issuer in accordance with the Conditions and the Bonds to be redeemed will not be selected as provided in the Conditions but in accordance with the rules and procedures of Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg (to be reflected in the records of Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg) as either a pool factor or a reduction in principal amount at their discretion.
Notices: Notwithstanding Condition 16 (Notices), while all the Bonds are represented by the Permanent Global Bond (or by the Permanent Global Bond and/or the Temporary Global Bond) and the Permanent Global Bond is (or the Permanent Global Bond and/or the Temporary Global Bond are) deposited with a common depositary for Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg, notices to Bondholders may be given by delivery of the relevant notice to Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg and, in any case, such notices shall be deemed to have been given to Bondholders in accordance with Condition 16 (Notices) on the date of delivery to Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg.
Electronic Consent and Written Resolution: While any Temporary Global Bond or Permanent Global Bond is held on behalf of a clearing system, then:
The net proceeds of the issue of the Bonds, after deduction of commissions, fees and estimated expenses, are expected to be approximately £247,920,000 and to be used for general corporate purposes of the Group, including the refinancing of existing debt.
The Issuer is a commercial property owner, headquartered in London and focused on the London office market. The Issuer is a member of the FTSE 250 index with a market capitalisation of approximately £2,192 million as at 28 May 2025.
The Issuer, together with its subsidiary undertakings, associated undertakings and investments, are collectively referred to as the "Group". The Issuer is the ultimate global owner of the Group, which is known as "Derwent London".
A timeline of key events in the Group's history is set out below:
The Issuer is the largest London office-focused REIT with a portfolio value of approximately £5,041 million as at 31 December 2024. As a leading owner, manager and developer of modern office property, the Group's principal activities consist of commercial real estate asset management, development and refurbishment, and investment activity.
The Group improves and upgrades central London office space, and its design-led ethos has created a brand of well-designed, flexible and efficient buildings at a wide range of rents. With a focus on design, amenity and sustainability, the Derwent London portfolio includes larger 'HQ' buildings on longer leases, (typically 5-20 years) plus its 'furnished and flexible' product. The latter provides fully fitted space in smaller units (typically up to 10,000 sq ft) to occupiers requiring more flexibility. All occupiers benefit from being 'DL/Members' with access to two lounges in Old Street and Fitzrovia, an App providing member benefits and additional services.
The Group also adds value by recycling capital, acquiring properties with future regeneration opportunities to build a pipeline of projects and disposing of those which no longer meet its investment criteria and forward return expectations.
Derwent London is committed to operating the investment portfolio on a net zero carbon basis by 2030. Under its net zero pathway, new developments and major refurbishments will be net zero carbon on completion. The Group has set ambitious targets to reduce its carbon footprint as far as possible and committed to offset any residual carbon that either cannot be managed out or eliminated.
As at 31 December 2024, the Group owned 5.4 million sq ft of space in 62 buildings. The portfolio's annualised net passing rental income of £204.3 million as at 31 December 2024 is split 91 per cent. offices and 9 per cent. retail and hospitality. After 'topping-up' for rent-free incentive periods, the average portfolio rent was £63.03 per sq ft as at 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: £62.79 per sq ft) and the topped up net initial yield was 5.2 per cent.. At the same date, the portfolio had a 3.1 per cent. EPRA vacancy rate (by estimated rental value, "ERV"). As at 31 March 2025, the EPRA vacancy rate was 3.4 per cent.
The portfolio's ERV stood at £320.5 million at 31 December 2024, taking into account a cashflow reversion comprising: £42.3 million of contractual uplifts predominantly as rent-free incentives expire, £34.4 million of additional cash from the letting of on-site developments and major refurbishments (of which £20.7 million is prelet), £8.4 million of new rent from letting 'available to occupy' space, £12.8 million from small refurbishment and upgrade projects and £18.3 million from rent reviews and expiries.
Rental growth has been modest in the central London office market in recent years but has been accelerating since 2020 with 2024 showing the highest ERV growth since 2016, at 4.3 per cent. As a result, Derwent London's ERV growth guidance for 2025 is 3-6 per cent.
Investment yields were relatively stable from 2014 to 2021 during which period gilt and bond yields were generally falling. Since 2021, property yields have risen sharply. Between 2021 and 2023, the Group's portfolio true equivalent yield rose 105bps. The rate of increase then slowed in 2024, with an increase of only 18bps in 2024, arising mainly in the first quarter to 5.73 per cent. at 31 December 2024.
Source: Issuer

The Group typically acquires properties off-market with low capital values and modest rents in improving locations, most of which are either in the West End or areas bordering the City of London. A distinguishing feature of the Group's portfolio is that it is located in 13 London 'villages' (as at 31 December 2024) with no properties in the City of London core or Docklands/Canary Wharf: 75 per cent. of the portfolio is located in the West End in areas such as Fitzrovia, Victoria, Paddington, Soho, Marylebone and Mayfair and 23 per cent. is located in the City Borders including Old Street, Clerkenwell, Shoreditch, Whitechapel and Southbank. The remaining 2 per cent. of the Group's property portfolio is located in Scotland and consists mainly of land and retail properties. Over 80 per cent. of the London portfolio is located within 800 metres of an Elizabeth line station.

1Based on floor area 2'Topped-up office' rent includes development pre-lets
Source: Issuer
Many of the Group's properties are distinctive landmarks in their local areas including, in particular 80 Charlotte Street W1, Soho Place W1, Brunel Building W2, White Collar Factory EC1, The Featherstone Building EC1, Angel Building EC1, 1-2 Stephen Street W1, Horseferry House SW1 and Tea Building E1.
The Group focuses on forward-thinking, design-led space and developing buildings which are distinctive, adaptable and amenity-rich. The Group's occupier base is well diversified with a focus on media and creative businesses.
As a result of these characteristics, Derwent London has historically had a low vacancy rate. Since 2022, the Group's EPRA vacancy rate has been above average, largely due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. At 31 December 2024, the EPRA vacancy rate was 3.1 per cent., following a period of strong leasing momentum.

1 Based on annualised rental income
Source: Issuer
As at 31 December 2024, the Group's top 20 tenants by 'topped-up' rental income were:
| 'Topped-up' rent % |
||
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Public sector1 | 6.0 |
| 02 | Expedia | 5.9 |
| 03 | Burberry | 5.5 |
| 04 | Boston Consulting Group | 5.1 |
| 05 | PIMCO (pre-let) | 4.0 |
| 06 | G-Research | 3.6 |
| 07 | Arup | 3.6 |
| 08 | Fora | 3.0 |
| 09 | Apollo | 2.9 |
| 10 | Paymentsense | 2.3 |
| 11 | Moelis (pre-let) | 1.9 |
| 12 | Sony Pictures | 1.8 |
| 13 | VCCP | 1.7 |
| 14 | Adobe | 1.5 |
| 15 | Fremantle | 1.4 |
| 16 | Accenture | 1.3 |
| 17 | Telecity Group/Digital London | 1.2 |
| 18 | Soho House | 1.2 |
| 19 | Morningstar | 1.1 |
| 20 | Fdelman | 1.1 |
| Total | 56.1 |
As at 31 December 2024, the portfolio had a weighted average unexpired lease term (to break) of 5.9 years rising to 6.8 years on a 'topped-up' basis adjusting for contractual uplifts and development pre-lets (31 December 2023: 6.5 years and 7.4 years respectively). The Group had 437,000 sq ft of space under construction which forms part of the c.2 million sq ft potential regeneration pipeline based on post-development floor areas, including comprehensive refurbishment projects.
The two large projects on site comprise 25 Baker Street W1 (298,000 sq ft with completion expected in H1 2025) and Network W1 (139,000 sq ft with completion anticipated in H2 2025) which together represent 8 per cent. of the portfolio by floor area as at 31 December 2024. The offices at 25 Baker Street are already 100 per cent. prelet, reflecting the shortage of prime space in the West End of London that satisfies occupier requirements for location, amenity and sustainability and a relatively constrained supply outlook. In addition, 15 of the 41 private residential units for sale had also been exchanged by 31 December 2024, plus one further sale made in 2025, totalling £83.0 million.
The c.1.6 million sq ft future pipeline primarily comprises buildings which have redevelopment or refurbishment potential. These include the redevelopment of Holden House W1, a 133,500 sq ft redevelopment behind a retained façade, providing an uplift in area of 47 per cent. and currently due to start in H2 2025. In addition, planning was recently received at 50 Baker Street W1 for a c.240,000 sq ft development providing an uplift in area of 97 per cent.; this property is due to start in H1 2026. Both of these projects are currently income producing. Further regeneration projects include the comprehensive refurbishments of Greencoat and Gordon House SW1 and 20 Farringdon Road EC1, which are also income producing, as well as major developments planned at Old Street Quarter EC1 and 230 Blackfriars Road SE1. The Group has an agreement to acquire Old Street Quarter, a 2.5 acre island site, for £239 million which is expected to complete from 2027, subject to receipt of vacant possession.
The Group's portfolio consists of three main types of properties (two of which are income producing):
In designing and delivering schemes, the Group takes a long-term view, looking to identify risks to income or values early on. The Group prepares an annual five-year plan to assess risks and opportunities and ensure its properties are forward-looking with appeal to a wide range of tenants.
The Group's corporate strategy is underpinned by its five core strategic objectives:
The Group plans to optimise returns from a portfolio which is balanced between properties with potential to add further value through regeneration and those which have already been repositioned but where its asset management skills can continue to grow value and income.
Maintaining a balanced portfolio enables the Group to start development projects speculatively. However, the Group normally de-risks projects during the construction period by agreeing pre-letting terms with one or more tenants.
The Group also regularly reviews the portfolio to identify capital recycling opportunities which involves disposing of assets where most of the upside has been captured or which no longer meet its investment criteria.
For the period from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2024, the Group disposed of £364 million of properties, and invested £499 million on capital expenditure plus £188 million on acquisitions.
Capital recycling, investing in the portfolio and having a strong pipeline of projects has helped the Group grow its rental values, while maintaining a relatively low level of debt and interest cover at around four times.

Real estate values are largely determined by contracted and expected future cash flows combined with a market yield which takes account of risk, growth expectations, quality and environmental considerations among other factors.
The Group's asset managers look to capture any increase in rents through rent reviews, lease re-gears or other lease restructuring. This is underpinned by strong relationships with occupiers, local communities and other stakeholders.
The Group focuses on creating spaces which appeal to an occupier's employees and believes that addressing the climate change aspects of its buildings will help generate more resilient rental growth in the future. Occupiers are increasingly looking for adaptability and flexibility, and for many years, the Group has taken a flexible approach as part of its core product offering (for example, the Group's 'Furnished + Flexible' units), while, at other buildings, aiming for longer leases, particularly on larger lettings.
This approach has helped the Group maintain a relatively high tenant retention rate. As a result of this and the success in pre-letting its major schemes, the Group had a weighted average unexpired lease term
Source: Issuer
of 5.9 years (weighted by passing rent) as at 31 December 2024 (rising to 6.8 years on a 'topped-up' basis allowing for rent-free incentive periods and contracted pre-lets).

1 Based upon annualised rental income of £204.3 million
Source: Issuer
Derwent London lease expiries and break outcome analysis1

Outcome of lease breaks/expiries in the year
Source: Issuer

1Portfolio WAULT 'topped-up' for contractual uplifts and pre-lets
Another important aspect of the Group's asset management strategy is to capture the income and cashflow reversion which it creates from the improvements it makes to the portfolio. The main factor which contributes to the success of this aspect of the Group's strategy is the impact of major developments or refurbishments, but it also depends on rent reviews or re-letting of space which may become vacant.
The following charts show how the Group's reversion has developed over the last few years and the composition of the reversion as at 31 December 2024.

Source: Issuer

1 Before lease incentives
The Group's employees are key to the successful delivery of its strategy and long-term business performance. The Group has a high performing, progressive and collaborative culture coupled with a consultative and professional leadership style. The Group's employees are ambassadors for its brand and it therefore invests considerable time and resources in their development and growth, as well as ensuring that the Group recruits outstanding individuals who bring creativity, skills and competencies to the business.
Delivering well-designed, adaptable, occupier-focused buildings with enhanced amenity is an integral part of the Group's business model. The Group believes these buildings offer better long-term value for customers through more efficient occupation, reduce letting risk and void levels, and command better rents, yields and values. Setting high standards for design and environmental responsibility allows the Group to build flexibility, longevity and climate resilience into the portfolio across new schemes and existing properties.
To meet the Group's target of becoming a net zero carbon business by 2030, its focus is on delivering buildings that are increasingly energy efficient, powered by renewable energy and have low embodied carbon footprints. The Group seeks to reduce overall energy consumption through enhanced operational efficiency and occupier engagement, and is removing natural gas through converting its properties to all-electric power where feasible, to lower the operational carbon footprint.
The Group finances its business using equity and a moderate level of debt – see the section titled "Liquidity and Capital Base" below for further detail with respect to the Group's debt profile.
The Group's overriding financing principle is one of modest financial leverage and generous interest cover, to balance the relatively high risk attached to regeneration schemes.
Using a combination of unsecured flexible revolving bank facilities and longer-term fixed rate debt (both secured and unsecured), the Group can adjust the level of drawn debt to its day-to-day requirements. The Group aims to maintain considerable headroom under its facilities to enable it to move quickly when acquisition opportunities arise. Although the Group incurs some non-utilisation fees, this strategy provides the Group comfort that cash flows can be funded without delay and demonstrates to the Group and its stakeholders that the development pipeline is capable of being financed and delivered without overstretching the balance sheet.
The Group proactively manages liquidity to ensure it has sufficient funds to meet obligations as they fall due. This includes daily cash flow monitoring and weekly forecasting, monthly monitoring of the maturity profile of debt and regular review of borrowing facilities in relation to the Group's funding requirements and strategy. To ensure it can effectively manage its liquidity risk, the Group currently has in place four revolving credit facilities totalling £615 million, including a £300 million tranche of 'green' finance. This includes the £32.5 million revolving credit portion of the new £115 million bank facility agreement signed in February 2025.
Occupier focus across the central London office market remains on quality, location and amenity. Existing supply that satisfies these requirements is limited, however, and the market development pipeline is thin. Together, rental growth is increasing for the best space.
Take-up in 2024 was positive and active occupier demand is elevated whilst vacancy continues to reduce and the medium-term development pipeline is constrained. Consequently, larger businesses are launching new requirements at an ever earlier stage. Overall take-up rose 4 per cent. to 11.3 million sq ft, in line with the 10 year average. At 3.5 million sq ft, West End take-up reduced 6 per cent. as space under offer rose 11 per cent. to 0.9 million sq ft. In the City, take-up increased 3 per cent. to 5.8 million sq ft, but under offers declined 20 per cent. to 0.9 million sq ft. Across London, active demand rose 30 per cent. to 12.8 million sq ft, the highest level on record, although transactions are generally taking longer to complete.

Source: CBRE

Vacancy across central London reduced by 4 million sq ft through 2024 to 7.5 per cent., or 1.9 per cent. for Grade A. Within this, the West End remains well placed with a Grade A vacancy rate of 1.3 per cent. (5.0 per cent. overall) with the City at 2.0 per cent. (or 9.5 per cent. overall). The cyclical increase in demand from the banking and finance and business services sectors has supported a 3 million sq ft reduction in City availability to 8.0 million sq ft.
Across London, 14.5 million sq ft of committed developments are forecast to complete by 2028, of which 6.1 million sq ft is pre-let or under offer (42 per cent., rising to 51 per cent. for 2025 completions) and 8.4 million sq ft remains speculative. Based on average take-up over the last 10 years, this is equivalent to less than nine months' supply. 2025 is expected to see a spike in deliveries (8.8 million sq ft), but over the medium term, the pace of completions slows significantly.

Source: CBRE
After several years when central London office rents have been relatively flat, there is increasing evidence that rental growth is now accelerating.

Source: CBRE /MSCI
In relation to the investment market, recent liquidity across the London office market has been focused on smaller lot sizes where there is less of a requirement for leverage. With £4.9 billion of transactions completing in 2024, which compares to the long-term average of £11.4 billion, the average lot size was only £33 million. The availability of debt began to improve in Q2 2024, supported by the first cut in base rates and the reduction in swap rates. In a global context, London continues to enjoy a reputation as a 'safe haven'. As a result, sentiment is improving and a rising number of investors are switching from a 'wait and see' approach to being more acquisitive, with a rise in transaction volumes seen year to date in 2025

Source: CBRE
The Issuer believes the Group has a number of key credit strengths, including being:

• modestly leveraged with a strong balance sheet, 29.9 per cent. EPRA loan-to-value ratio as at 31 December 2024, a focus on earnings and dividend cover and an uncomplicated financial structure. The Group focuses on interest cover and this ratio, for the year to 31 December 2024, was 387 per cent. including joint ventures and 383 per cent. excluding joint ventures. Gross rental income increased by 45 per cent. to £214.8 million from 2015 to 2024. Property values for London offices have been impacted by higher property yields and borrowing costs since 2022, but the balance sheet has remained very resilient over the period and through many previous economic cycles.

Source: Issuer

Source: Issuer

Derwent London NAV and NAV Gearing
Source: Issuer
The Group's strategy takes into account risks, as well as opportunities, which need to be actively managed. The Board is ultimately responsible for determining the nature and extent of the principal risks it is willing to take to achieve its strategic objectives and challenging management's implementation of effective systems of risk identification, assessment and mitigation.
The Group's approach to the management and mitigation of these risks is included in its annual report for the financial year ended 31 December 2024.
At 31 December 2024, the net asset value of the Group was £3,539.8 million and the aggregate fair value of the Group's property portfolio was £5,041.1 million (carrying value of £4,860.5 million). For the year ended 31 December 2024, gross property and other income was £276.9 million and net rental income was £189.6 million, with EPRA earnings of £119.5 million and an IFRS profit before tax of £116.0 million. The later includes a revaluation deficit in the year of £2.7 million.
The following table sets out some of the key financial covenants for the Group and the reported measures as at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2024.
| Measure | Reported as at 31 December 2023 (audited) |
Reported as at 31 December 2024 (audited) |
|---|---|---|
| EPRA loan-to-value ratio | 27.9 per cent. | 29.9 per cent. |
| Net asset value gearing | 38.7 per cent. | 41.9 per cent. |
| Net interest cover ratio1 | 414 per cent. | 387 per cent. |
| Net debt / EBITDA1 | 8.8 times | 9.3 times |
| Liquidity | Headroom (undrawn bank facilities and cash): £480 million Average maturity: 5.0 years Fixed/Hedged: 98 per cent. |
Headroom (undrawn bank facilities and cash): £487 million Average maturity: 4.0 years Fixed/Hedged: 85 per cent. |
1 Including joint ventures
The Issuer's financial year is from 1 January to 31 December of each year. The Issuer has prepared Group consolidated financial statements as at and for each of the years ended 31 December 2023 and 2024, in accordance with UK-adopted international accounting standards as applied in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006 and Issuer financial statements as at and for the years ended 31 December 2023 and 2024 in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 101 "Reduced Disclosure Framework", and applicable law), copies of which have been filed with the FCA. The Issuer published its results for the year ended 31 December 2024 on 27 February 2025.
As at 31 December 2024, the Group's total net debt was £1,482.7 million (which is a £125.9 million increase from £1,356.8 million as at 31 December 2023).
Most of the Group's financing is unsecured with a weighted average debt maturity of 4.0 years at 31 December 2024 (31 December 2023: 5.0 years). The interest rate payable on drawn debt was 3.42 per cent. (31 December 2023: 3.17 per cent.) on a cash basis and 3.53 per cent. (31 December 2023: 3.29 per cent.) on an IFRS basis after adjusting for the 1.5 per cent. unsecured £175 million convertible bond issued by the Group in June 2019 which matures in June 2025. At 31 December 2024, the proportion of fixed or hedged debt held by the Group was 85 per cent. (31 December 2023: 98 per cent.) and the value of properties which were uncharged was £4,665
million (31 December 2023: £4,202 million) out of the total portfolio of £5,041 million (31 December 2023: £4,845 million).

Source: Issuer

Source: Issuer
Derwent London priority debt ratio (as described in Condition 4 (Financial Covenants) of the Terms and Conditions)

Source: Issuer
The Group's facilities and reconciliation to borrowings and net debt as at 31 December 2024 are summarised below:
| Drawn £m |
Undrawn £m |
Total £m |
Maturity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 per cent. secured bonds | 175.0 | - | 175.0 | March 2026 |
| 1.875 per cent. unsecured green bonds | 350.0 | - | 350.0 | November 2031 |
| 1.5 per cent. unsecured convertible bonds | 175.0 | - | 175.0 | June 2025 |
| 2.68 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 55.0 | - | 55.0 | January 2026 |
| 3.46 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 30.0 | - | 30.0 | May 2028 |
| 4.41 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 25.0 | - | 25.0 | January 2029 |
| 2.87 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 93.0 | - | 93.0 | January 2029 |
| 2.97 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 50.0 | - | 50.0 | January 2031 |
| 3.57 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 75.0 | - | 75.0 | May 2031 |
| 4.68 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 75.0 | - | 75.0 | January 2034 |
| 3.09 per cent. unsecured private placement notes | 52.0 | - | 52.0 | January 2034 |
| Other loans1 | 20.0 | - | 20.0 | n/a |
| Non-bank loans | 1,175.0 | - | 1,175.0 | |
| Club revolving credit | 87.0 | 363.0 | 450.0 | October 2026 |
| Bilateral term loan/revolving credit | 82.5 | 32.5 | 115.0 | December 2026 |
| Bilateral term loan | 100.0 | - | 100.0 | June 2027 |
| Bilateral revolving credit | 23.5 | 76.5 | 100.0 | November 2027 |
| Committed bank facilities | 293.0 | 472.0 | 765.0 | |
| Debt facilities | 1,468.0 | 472.0 | 1,940.0 | |
| Acquired fair value of secured bonds less amortisation | 3.4 | |||
| Equity adjustment to convertible bonds less amortisation | (0.6) | |||
| Unamortised issue and arrangement costs | (6.0) | |||
| Unamortised discount on unsecured green bonds | (1.3) | |||
| Borrowings | 1,463.5 | |||
| Leasehold liabilities | 34.6 | |||
| Cash at bank | (15.4) | |||
| Net debt | 1,482.7 |
1 No fixed repayment date
In February 2025, the Group signed a new £115 million unsecured bank facility agreement. The new facility includes an £82.5 million term loan and a £32.5 million revolving credit facility. The new facility is for an initial two-year term and includes one extension option.

In this section, each of the figures as at: 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2024, can be found in the Group's audited financial statements for the financial year of the Group ending on such date.
The Group has incorporated environmental, social and governance ("ESG") matters into its strategy, namely to design, deliver and operate its buildings responsibly. The Group focuses on a number of key performance indicators, including Building Research Establishment's Environmental Assessment Method ("BREEAM") ratings for the Group's major developments and refurbishments, and Energy Performance Certificates ("EPCs") for the Group's buildings.
The Group has two green debt instruments: the £350 million unsecured green bond due 2031 issued in 2021 and a £300 million 'green tranche' as part of its £450 million unsecured revolving credit facility ("RCF"). Under the terms of these instruments, the Group is committed to investing the proceeds in eligible green projects under its Green Finance Framework (as defined below). The Group's cumulative expenditure on eligible green projects incurred to 31 December 2024 was £878.0 million, and total drawn borrowings from green financing transactions were £437.0 million. This included £87.0 million from the green tranche of the Group's main £450 million revolving credit facility plus the £350 million Green Bonds.
As part of its commitment to mitigating climate change, the Group:
In July 2020, the Group published its detailed pathway to net zero carbon, aligned to the BBP's Net Zero Carbon Framework. Since then, the embodied carbon of all its regeneration projects, large and small, has been offset using high quality carbon removal offsets. 80 Charlotte Street W1, which completed in 2020, was the Group's first all-electric building and net zero carbon development and has served as an important blueprint for future projects. The Group proactively seeks to reduce the embodied carbon footprint of its projects and has set stretching targets for future deliveries of <600 kgCO2e/sqm for projects completing from 2025 reducing to <500 kgCO2e/sqm for projects completing from 2030. Recent project completions at Soho Place W1 and The Featherstone Building EC1 were delivered in line with these targets and its on-site projects at 25 Baker Street W1 and Network W1 are forecast to complete within target.
For the managed portfolio, the Group has set an energy intensity target of 90 kWh/sqm by 2030, a 46 per cent. reduction compared to its 2019 baseline energy intensity of 166 kWh/sqm. To achieve this target, it will remove natural gas from the portfolio where possible and engage with occupiers to support them in reducing their energy usage. In addition, several other initiatives are being rolled out including the installation of LED lighting, retrofitting specialist boiler management equipment, implementation of the findings of the 2023 ESOS assessment and EPC upgrade works among others.
The Group continues to procure 100 per cent. of energy on renewable tariffs and is making progress on its plans to develop an 18.4 MW solar park on part of its Scottish land. In 2023, full planning consent was secured for the solar park and the project is now underway with completion expected in 2026 following which it is forecast to generate more than 40 per cent. of the London managed portfolio's electricity requirements. In addition, in 2015 woodland planting took place on 103 acres on our Scottish land holdings, in accordance with the Woodland Carbon Code, from which the first carbon credits have been delivered. Further tree planting opportunities are being explored.
Social and governance issues are also important to both the stakeholders and business of the Group. The Group has a rigorous compliance training programme, which is mandatory for all employees and covers topics such as fraud awareness, cyber security and competition law, and the Group's Community Fund, which has supported over 160 community projects in the West End and the Tech Belt with funding in excess of £1.1 million since its launch in 2013.
At 31 March 2025, net debt fell slightly to £1,470.2 million from £1,482.7 million at 31 December 2024. This resulted in the EPRA loan-to-value ratio reducing slightly at 31 March 2025 to 29.6 per cent. based on 31 December 2024 valuations.
Interest cover for the three months to 31 March 2025 was 351 per cent. and cash and undrawn facilities totalled £615 million at the end of the quarter. The Group's weighted average interest rate at 31 March 2025 was 3.43 per cent. on a cash basis and 3.54 per cent. on an IFRS basis.
The financial data as of and for three months ended 31 March 2025 included in this Prospectus has been prepared by, and is the responsibility of, Issuer's management. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP has not audited, reviewed, examined, compiled, nor applied agreed-upon procedures with respect to the financial data as of and for the three months ended 31 March 2025. Accordingly, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP does not express an opinion or any other form of assurance with respect thereto.
Derwent London plc, the Issuer, is a public limited company incorporated in England and Wales (with registration number 01819699). The registered office of the Issuer is 25 Savile Row, London, W1S 2ER, United Kingdom and the telephone number is +44 (0) 20 7659 3000.
The Issuer is the holding company of the Group and, as at the date of this Prospectus has a total of 59 subsidiaries incorporated in England and Wales and one subsidiary formed in Jersey.
At the date of this Prospectus, the Issuer was not aware of any persons who directly or indirectly, jointly or severally, will exercise or could exercise control over the Issuer.
At the date of this Prospectus, the Issuer was not aware of any arrangement, the operation of which may at a subsequent date result in a change of control of the Issuer.
The board of the Issuer comprises seven non-executive directors (including the Chairman) and four executive directors. Their names and principal functions and principal activities outside the Group, where those are significant, are as follows:
| Name | Function | Outside Directorships |
|---|---|---|
| Mark Breuer | Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors |
Chairman of DCC plc |
| Chairman of the Nominations Committee and Member of the Responsible Business Committee |
||
| Paul Williams | Chief Executive | Director of Sadler's Wells Foundation |
| Member of the Responsible Business Committee |
Chairman of the New West End Company | |
| Board member of the Westminster Property Association |
||
| Member of the Real Estate Committee of HM The King SMI |
||
| Damian Wisniewski | Chief Financial Officer | Member of the governing body and Chair of Audit Committee at the Royal Academy of Music |
| Deputy Chairman and Chair of the Finance and Business Development Committee at the ABRSM |
||
| Nigel George | Executive Director | Co-opted member of the Royal Albert Hall Fabric Committee |
| Emily Prideaux | Executive Director | NLA Expert Panel Member |
| Advisor to the Prince's Council serving on the Commercial Property Development Committee (CPDC) for the Duchy of Cornwall |
| Name | Function | Outside Directorships |
|---|---|---|
| Lucinda Bell | Independent Non-Executive Director |
Non-Executive Director at Man Group Plc |
| Chair of the Audit Committee | ||
| Member of the Risk Committee, the Nominations Committee and the Remuneration Committee |
||
| Helen Gordon | Senior Independent Non Executive Director |
CEO of Grainger plc |
| Chair of the Risk Committee | Board member and Past President of the British Property Federation |
|
| Member of the Remuneration Committee and the |
Vice Chair and Board Member of the European Public Real Estate Association |
|
| Nominations Committee | Non-Executive Director of Business LDN | |
| Sanjeev Sharma | Independent Non-Executive Director |
Chief Property Portfolio Officer at M&G Real Estate, part of M&G plc |
| Chair of the Remuneration Committee |
||
| Member of the Audit Committee, the Risk Committee, and the Nominations Committee |
||
| Robert Wilkinson | Independent Non-Executive Director |
CEO of AEW Europe and Vice Chair of INREV's Management Board |
| Member of the Audit Committee and the Nominations Committee |
||
| Madeleine McDougall |
Independent Non-Executive Director |
Managing Director, Head of the Corporate Coverage Sector at Lloyds Banking Group |
| Member of the Risk Committee, Responsible Business Committee and the Nominations Committee |
Non-Executive Director of the British Property Federation |
The business address of Mark Breuer, Paul Williams, Damian Wisniewski, Nigel George, Emily Prideaux, Lucinda Bell, Helen Gordon, Sanjeev Sharma, Robert Wilkinson and Madeleine McDougall is Derwent London plc, 25 Savile Row, London, England, W1S 2ER, United Kingdom.
There are no potential conflicts of interest between the duties to the Issuer of the directors and their private interests and/or other duties.
The following is a general description of certain United Kingdom tax considerations relating to the Bonds and is based on the Issuer's understanding of current United Kingdom law and the published practice of HMRC (which may not be binding on HMRC) as at the latest practicable date before the date of this Prospectus. It is a general guide for information purposes and should be treated with appropriate caution. It assumes that there will be no substitution of the Issuer and does not address the consequences of any substitution (notwithstanding that such substitution may be permitted by the terms and conditions of the Bonds). It is not intended as tax advice and it does not purport to be a complete analysis of all tax considerations relating to the Bonds whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere. It applies only to the position of persons who are absolute beneficial owners of their Bonds. It describes only the United Kingdom withholding tax treatment of payments of interest in respect of the Bonds. It does not deal with any other aspect of the United Kingdom taxation treatment of acquiring, holding or disposing of the Bonds.
The United Kingdom tax treatment of prospective Bondholders depends on their individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future, possibly with retrospective effect. Prospective holders of Bonds who are in any doubt as to their tax position or who may be subject to tax in a jurisdiction other than the United Kingdom in respect of their acquisition, holding or disposal of the Bonds are particularly advised to consult their professional advisers as to whether they are so liable (and if so under the laws of which jurisdictions), since the following comments relate only to certain United Kingdom taxation aspects of payments in respect of the Bonds. In particular, Bondholders should be aware that they may be liable to taxation under the laws of other jurisdictions in relation to payments in respect of the Bonds even if such payments may be made without withholding or deduction for or on account of taxation under the laws of the United Kingdom.
Also investors should note that the appointment by an investor in Bonds, or any person through which an investor holds Bonds, of a custodian, collection agent or similar person in relation to such Bonds in any jurisdiction may have tax implications. Investors should consult their own tax advisers in relation to the tax consequences for them of any such appointment.
The Bonds will constitute "quoted Eurobonds" within the meaning of section 987 of the Income Tax Act 2007 (the "Act") provided they are and continue to be listed on a "recognised stock exchange", within the meaning of section 1005 of the Act) or are and continue to be admitted to trading on a "multilateral trading facility" operated by a regulated recognised stock exchange (within the meaning of section 987 of the Act). Provided that the Bonds are and continue to be quoted Eurobonds, payments of interest by the Issuer on the Bonds may be made without withholding or deduction for or on account of United Kingdom income tax.
The London Stock Exchange is a "recognised stock exchange". The Issuer's understanding of current HMRC practice is that securities which are officially listed and admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange may be regarded as "listed on a recognised stock exchange" for these purposes.
In other cases, absent a relief or exemption (such as a direction by HMRC that interest may be paid without withholding or deduction for or on account of United Kingdom income tax to a specified Bondholder following an application by that Bondholder under an applicable double tax treaty (a "Treaty")), an amount must generally be withheld on account of United Kingdom income tax at the basic rate (currently 20 per cent.) from payments of interest by the Issuer on the Bonds.
Where Bonds are to be, or may fall to be, redeemed at a premium, as opposed to being issued at a discount, then any such element of premium may constitute a payment of interest. Payments of interest are subject to United Kingdom withholding tax as outlined above.
Where interest has been paid under deduction of United Kingdom income tax, Bondholders who are not resident in the United Kingdom may be able to recover all or part of the tax deducted if there is an appropriate provision in any Treaty.
The references to "interest" in this Taxation section of this Prospectus mean "interest" as understood in United Kingdom tax law. The statements in this section above do not take any account of any different definitions of "interest" or "principal" which may prevail under any other law or which may be created by the terms and conditions of the Bonds or any related documentation. Bondholders should seek their own professional advice as regards the withholding tax treatment of any payment on the Bonds which does not constitute "interest" or "principal" as those terms are understood in United Kingdom tax law. Where a payment on a Bond does not constitute (or is not treated as) interest for United Kingdom tax purposes, and the payment has a United Kingdom source, it would potentially be subject to United Kingdom withholding tax if, for example, it constitutes (or is treated as) an annual payment or a manufactured payment for United Kingdom tax purposes. In such a case, the payment may fall to be made under deduction of United Kingdom tax (the rate of withholding depending on the nature of the payment), subject to such relief as may be available following a direction from HMRC pursuant to the provisions of any Treaty, or to any other exemption which may apply.
The Managers have, pursuant to a subscription agreement dated 2 June 2025 (the "Subscription Agreement") and made between the Issuer and the Managers upon the terms and subject to the conditions contained therein, jointly and severally agreed to subscribe for the Bonds at the issue price of 99.493 per cent. of the principal amount of the Bonds, in each case less a combined management and underwriting commission payable to the Managers. The Issuer has also agreed to reimburse the Managers for certain of their expenses incurred in connection with the management of the issue of the Bonds. The Managers are entitled in certain circumstances to be released and discharged from their obligations under the Subscription Agreement prior to the closing of the issue of the Bonds.
The Bonds have not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act or under any relevant securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States. The Bonds may not be offered or sold or delivered within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons except in certain transactions exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act. Terms used in this paragraph have the meanings given to them by Regulation S.
The Bonds are subject to U.S. tax law requirements and may not be offered, sold or delivered within the United States or its possessions or to a United States person, except in certain transactions permitted by U.S. tax regulations. Terms used in this paragraph have the meanings given to them by the United States Internal Revenue Code and regulations thereunder, as amended and the Treasury regulations promulgated thereunder.
Each Joint Lead Manager has agreed that, except as permitted by the Subscription Agreement, it will not offer, sell or deliver the Bonds: (a) as part of their distribution at any time; or (b) otherwise, until 40 days after the later of the commencement of the offering and the issue date of the Bonds, within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons, and that it will have sent to each dealer to which it sells Bonds during the distribution compliance period a confirmation or other notice setting forth the restrictions on offers and sales of the Bonds within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons.
In addition, until 40 days after commencement of the offering, an offer or sale of Bonds within the United States by a dealer (whether or not participating in the offering) may violate the registration requirements of the Securities Act.
Each Joint Lead Manager has represented and agreed that it has not offered, sold or otherwise made available and will not offer, sell or otherwise make available any Bonds to any retail investor in the EEA. For the purposes of this provision the expression "retail investor" means a person who is one (or both) of the following:
Each Joint Lead Manager has represented and agreed, that it has not offered, sold or otherwise made available any Bonds to any retail investor in the UK. For the purposes of this provision the expression retail investor means a person who is one (or both) of the following:
Each Joint Lead Manager has represented and agreed that:
Persons into whose hands this Prospectus come are required by the Issuer and the Managers to comply with all applicable laws and regulations in each country or jurisdiction in which they purchase, offer, sell or deliver Bonds or possess, distribute or publish this Prospectus or any other offering material relating to the Bonds, in all cases at their own expense.
No action has been taken by the Issuer or any of the Managers that would, or is intended to, permit a public offer of the Bonds in any country or jurisdiction where any such action for that purpose is required. Accordingly, each Joint Lead Manager has undertaken that it will not, directly or indirectly, offer or sell any Bonds or distribute or publish any offering circular, form of application, advertisement or other document or information in any country or jurisdiction except under circumstances that will, to the best of its knowledge and belief, result in compliance with any applicable laws and regulations and all offers and sales of Bonds by it will be made on the same terms.
The creation and issue of the Bonds has been authorised by a resolution of the Board of Directors of the Issuer dated 22 May 2025 and by a further resolution of a committee of the Board of Directors of the Issuer dated 22 May 2025.
The Issuer's legal entity identifier code is: 213800BXKQ9KZNUR1M61.
The total expenses related to the admission of trading of the Bonds are estimated to be £6,850.
There are no governmental, legal or arbitration proceedings (including any such proceedings which are pending or threatened, of which the Issuer is aware) which may have, or have had during the 12 months prior to the date of this Prospectus, a significant effect on the financial position or profitability of the Issuer and/or the Group.
There has been no material adverse change in the prospects of the Issuer or the Group since 31 December 2024, being the date to which the latest audited financial statements of the Issuer and the Group has been published. There has been no significant change in the financial position or financial performance of the Issuer or the Group since 31 December 2024, being the date to which the latest audited or reviewed financial statements of the Issuer and the Group has been published.
The consolidated financial statements of the Group and financial statements of the Issuer have been audited without qualification for each of the years ended 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2024 by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP ("PwC"), in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) ("ISAs (UK)") and applicable law. PwC is registered with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
Copies of the following documents may be inspected during normal business hours at the offices of the Issuer at 25 Savile Row, London, W1S 2ER:
There are no material contracts entered into other than in the ordinary course of any of the Issuer's or a member of the Group's business, which could result in any of the Issuer or a member of the Group being under an obligation or entitlement that is material to the Issuer's ability to meet its obligations to Bondholders in respect of the Bonds.
On the basis of the issue price of the Bonds of 99.493 per cent. of their principal amount, the yield on the Bonds is 5.338 per cent. on a semi-annual basis. These figures are calculated on the basis of the issue price and as at the date of this Prospectus and are not an indication of future yield.
The Bonds and any Coupons appertaining thereto will bear a legend to the following effect: "Any United States person who holds this obligation will be subject to limitations under the United States income tax laws, including the limitations provided in Sections 165(j) and 1287(a) of the Internal Revenue Code."
The Bonds have been accepted for clearance through Euroclear and Clearstream, Luxembourg.
The International Securities Identification Number ("ISIN") for the Bonds is XS2912253494 and the common code is 291225349. The CFI and FISN for the Bonds will be set out on the website of the Association of National Numbering Agencies (ANNA) or alternatively sourced from the responsible National Numbering Agency that assigned the ISIN for the Bonds (as applicable).
The address of Euroclear is Euroclear Bank SA/NV, 1 Boulevard du Roi Albert II, B-1210 Brussels and the address of Clearstream, Luxembourg is Clearstream Banking S.A., 42 Avenue JF Kennedy, L-1855 Luxembourg.
Certain of the Managers and their affiliates have engaged, and may in the future engage, in investment banking and/or commercial banking transactions with, and may perform services for, the Issuer and its affiliates in the ordinary course of business. Certain of the Managers and their affiliates may have positions, deal or make markets in the Bonds, related derivatives and reference obligations, including (but not limited to) entering into hedging strategies on behalf of the Issuer and its affiliates, investor clients, or as principal in order to manage their exposure, their general market risk, or other trading activities.
In addition, in the ordinary course of their business activities, the Managers and their affiliates may make or hold a broad array of investments and actively trade debt and equity securities (or related derivative securities) and financial instruments (including bank loans) for their own account and for the accounts of their customers. Such investments and securities activities may involve securities and/or instruments of the Issuer or its affiliates. Certain of the Managers or their affiliates that have a lending relationship with the Issuer routinely hedge their credit exposure to the Issuer consistent with their customary risk management policies. Typically, such Managers and their affiliates would hedge such exposure by entering into transactions which consist of either the purchase of credit default swaps or the creation of short positions in securities, including potentially the Bonds. Any such positions could adversely affect future trading prices of the Bonds. The Managers and their affiliates may also make investment recommendations and/or publish or express independent research views in respect of such securities or financial instruments and may hold, or recommend to clients that they acquire, long and/or short positions in such securities and instruments.
25 Savile Row
London
W1S 2ER
Barclays Bank PLC
1 Churchill Place London E14 5HP United Kingdom
HSBC Bank plc 8 Canada Square London E14 5HQ United Kingdom
NatWest Markets Plc 250 Bishopsgate London EC2M 4AA United Kingdom
Wells Fargo Securities International Limited 33 King William Street London EC4R 9AT United Kingdom
HSBC Bank plc Level 14, 8 Canada Square London E14 5HQ
HSBC Corporate Trustee Company (UK) Limited Level 14, 8 Canada Square London E14 5HQ
To the Issuer as to English law: To the Joint Lead Managers and the Trustee as to English law:
Slaughter and May One Bunhill Row London EC1Y 8YY
Clifford Chance, LLP
10 Upper Bank Street London E14 5JJ
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP 7 More London, Riverside London SE1 2RT
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