Manulife Financial Completes $2.26 Bln Subscription Receipt Offerings

(RTTNews) - Manulife (MFC, MFC.TO) announced the completion of its previously announced offerings of subscription receipts, raising a total of about $2.26 billion.

Approximately, $1.76 billion of subscription receipts were sold to a syndicate of underwriters in a public bought deal offering, which amount includes the exercise in full of the underwriters' over-allotment option, and  $500 million of subscription receipts were sold by way of private placement to the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Quebec.

The subscription receipts sold pursuant to the public offering will commence trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange today under the ticker symbol MFC.R.

The company said the net proceeds from the sale of the subscription receipts will be held by an escrow agent pending the completion of Manulife's previously announced acquisition of the Canadian-based operations of Standard Life plc. The closing of the acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals and the approval of the shareholders of Standard Life plc. Subject to the receipt of all necessary approvals, the acquisition is anticipated to close in the first quarter of 2015.

The subscription receipts sold in the public offering were issued under a prospectus supplement dated September 5, 2014 to Manulife's short form base shelf prospectus dated June 23, 2014, according to the company.