Public Finance

On July 28, 2026, Loop Capital Markets served as Bookrunning Senior Manager on the County of Cook, Illinois’ (the “County”) $120.725 million Sales Tax Revenue Bonds, Series 2026 (the “Bonds”). The financing was rated Aa3 (Stable), AA+ (Stable), and AAA (Stable) by Moody’s, Fitch, and Kroll, respectively. Proceeds will be used to (i) refund all or a portion of the County’s outstanding General Obligation Bonds, Series 2014D and Series 2018 (revolving credit facilities), and (ii) finance or refinance the construction, equipping, altering, or repairing of various County facilities.

The Bonds included serial maturities extending through 2048 to optimize debt service by leveraging the steepness of the yield curve in that segment, resulting in lower financing costs for the County. The Bonds also included a term bond maturing in 2051, with 5.00% coupons for bonds maturing 2026-2045 and 5.25% coupons for bonds maturing from 2046-2048 and in 2051 to garner incremental demand amid long-end resistance, and a 9-year par call on November 15, 2035 with no pricing penalty.

The Firm worked with the County and its municipal advisor to develop an electronic investor roadshow to highlight key transaction details and updates on the County, which was viewed by 19 unique accounts. Leading up to the pricing, municipal yields moved higher across the curve amid elevated new-issue supply and rising Treasury yields, with longer maturities underperforming as investors demanded additional concession for duration risk. Despite market headwinds, the transaction garnered $832 million of going-away orders, resulting in 6.9x subscription. More than half of the transaction was sponsored by long-term, buy-and-hold bond funds. Driven by compelling investor interest and participation, the Firm was able to tighten the 2026-2048 serial bonds by a weighted average of 8 basis points and the 2051 term bond by 12 basis points. The Bonds generated an All-In TIC of 4.807% with an average life of 18.287 years.