London — Not many institutions could sell 100-year debt in their first foray in the capital markets — but then, not many have been around since the 11th century. On Friday, the University of Oxford priced £750m of bonds due in 2117 to yield just more than 2.5%, in what may be the first 100-year obligation to be sold by a debut issuer, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. While the sale is not the only bond to have originated in Oxford — some of the university’s colleges have sold debt in the past — it is the first from the institution as a whole. The university joins a host of higher education institutions to have tapped debt-capital markets as they diversify sources of long-term funding. But none has attempted a century-long note, let alone in a debut sale. The success of the issue underscores just how conducive market conditions have become, with interest rates still near rock-bottom and investors crowded out of many high-grade names thanks to quantitative easing. Meanwhile, d...
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