2015 Deal of the Year: Far West Region

Who won this year's Deal of the Year award for the Far West Region? The winner will be honored on Thursday, December 3 at the Waldorf-Astoria in Manhattan, and later that night will compete with winners in the seven other categories for the right to be named The Bond Buyer's 2015 Deal of the Year.

VOICE OVER: The University of California is a giant of a university system with 10 campuses and more the 238,000 students. Sensing the opportunity created by the extended low-interest rate environment, the University of California regents put together a giant of a bond deal to save the system hundreds of millions of dollars. With more than $1 billion of bonds approaching their call dates, the university took the opportunity to evaluate its entire debt portfolio in search of refunding candidates. The outcome, the March issuance of $2.85 billion of bonds across four series involving two separate UC credits, the university refunded $2.3 billion of tax-exempt debt and raised about $650 million in new money for capital projects in a series of deals notable for their size, scope, and complexity.

The 2015 transaction was the largest ever in the higher education sector. Solid bond ratings, a blue-chip name, and strong investor demand resulted in an all-in yield to maturity of 3.44% with an average life of 13.9 years, funding projects that will serve Californians long into the future and save money in a tight budget environment.