Ex-bankers eye Bunnings' value

Three former Maquarie bankers have bought into a Wesfarmers (WES) capital raising worth $300 million, in a move to gain exposure to the group's Bunnings portfolio, The Australian Financial Review reports.

According to the newspaper, Allan Moss, Michael Carapiet and John Prendiville formed a consortium and purchased $17 million of the notes in the issue.

The AFR reports the "complex investment" will offer the trio exposure to the value of "15 Bunnings properties over the 12-year life of the bonds".

Last week Wesfarmers drew considerable attention for its unconventional $300 million capital raising – the first of its kind in Australia – which was split into $270 million of bonds sold to fixed income funds.