SINGAPORE (July 2): Financial blogger Kevin was over the moon when he found out about new private equity bonds for retail investors issued by Azalea Investment Management, a unit of Temasek Holdings. Believed to be the first of its kind in the world, the Astrea IV bonds are backed by cash flows from a US$1.1 billion (S$1.5 billion) portfolio of 36 private equity funds. 

Retail investors needed to fork out just S$2,000 to buy into the so-called Class A-1 tranche, which carries a relatively modest coupon of 4.35% per annum. To be sure, there are higher-yielding products around, but the attraction of Astrea IV lies in its novelty.

Kevin, who says on his blog that he used to be a “corporate lawyer who drafted IPO prospectuses for a living”, recalls that he was...(click on link for full story on theedgesingapore.com)