Board of Governors Meeting: Board Approves First Debenture Offering
Principles of Research Park master plan approved and Saad Rafi appointed as new board member
At its February 3, 2017 meeting Trent University’s Board of Governors approved a first-ever debenture offering to effectively refinance debt for considerable savings, approved the principles as set out in the Trent Research and Innovation Park Master Plan, and appointed a new board member, Saad Rafi.
Debenture Issuance
Following approval by the Board of Governors, the University issued an offering of $71 million in senior unsecured A debentures to refinance existing debt and provide funds for capital projects. Trent University received an A Rating from Dominion Bond Rating Service (DBRS) based on Trent’s “reputation as an important, primarily undergraduate and liberal arts institution” with increasing enrollment.
Trent Research and Innovation Park Master Plan
The Board resolved to approve the principles as set out in the Trent Research and Innovation Park draft master plan. As proposed, the draft plan remains subject to additional Indigenous and community consultation before being finalized. The item included a presentation from the City of Peterborough, a deputation from Sustainable Trent and a discussion on the agreed need for appropriate environmental studies as part of this planning process. This resulted in an addendum to the Board’s resolution requiring study about the potential presence of species at risk. The final master plan will return to the Board for approval at a later date.
New Board Appointment
The Board of Governors approved the appointment of a new Board member, Mr. Saad Rafi. Mr. Rafi is currently the national sector leader and financial advisory partner at Deloitte, based in Toronto. In this capacity, Mr. Rafi leads Deloitte’s Financial Advisory Economics and Policy Practice, with a focus on healthcare and government infrastructure management. He also provides sales leadership to the firm’s financial advisory infrastructure and project finance practice. Mr. Rafi was previously with Deloitte (2005-2008) as a partner, leading and exponentially growing Deloitte’s infrastructure advisory and project finance practice.
Prior to rejoining Deloitte, Mr. Rafi served as deputy minister of Transportation, Energy and Infrastructure, and Health and Long Term Care. Between 2014 and 2016, Mr. Rafi held positions as CEO of the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan and CEO of Pan Am/Parapan Am Games. Over the course of his 25 year career, Mr. Rafi served in three other deputy minister roles.
Mr. Rafi brings a strong cache of government relations experience and pension expertise to the Board table, notwithstanding his excellent business and financial acumen.