BNY Mellon Capital Markets Appointed as Selling Agent on Sales Agency Financing for Equity (SAFE) Programs for Host Hotels & Resorts and AvalonBay Communities

NEW YORK, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- BNY Mellon Capital Markets has been appointed as selling agent in Sales Agency Financing for Equity (SAFE) program filings by Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. and AvalonBay Communities, Inc. Each program totals $400 million; both were filed during the third quarter of 2009. BNY Mellon Capital Markets is acting as sole selling agent on behalf of Host Hotels & Resorts and joint selling agent for AvalonBay Communities.

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An alternative to traditional secondary equity offerings, SAFE programs are also referred to as "at the market" or continuous equity offerings. SAFE programs allow companies to raise equity capital as the need arises by selling shares from time to time through their sales agent at current market prices. The issuer controls the timing, amount and minimum sale price of the issuances.

SAFE programs have become increasingly attractive to public companies as a strategy for strengthening their balance sheet, and are especially well suited to companies in capital-intensive spaces like REITs and public utilities for whom "at the market" issuances are an attractive alternative to conventional "follow-on" offerings. BNY Mellon Capital Markets pioneered the development of SAFE programs in 2001, and has leveraged its experience and expertise to achieve a leading position in the continuous equity offering space. During 2009 BNY Mellon Capital Markets has acted as agent for at the market equity issuance programs registering more than $2.3 billion, and ranks among the top five selling agents for 2009 in terms of both number of mandates and total value of registered issuances.

"Our tradition of innovation was an important catalyst when continuous equity first emerged as a practical alternative to secondary offerings, and we continue to refine our offering to align the capital raising needs of our clients with current equity market conditions," said Gary Strumeyer, president of BNY Mellon Capital Markets.

A full-service securities broker-dealer subsidiary of BNY Mellon specializing in underwriting and sales and trading services, BNY Mellon Capital Markets, LLC (member FINRA, SIPC) is the partner of choice for institutional and high-net-worth investors seeking efficient execution, industry expertise with timely and relevant market commentary, and a collaborative relationship. Providing services tailored to large public and private corporations and various governmental and not-for-profit entities, BNY Mellon Capital Markets has been in operation for 25 years and serves more than 5,000 clients from offices in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). BNY Mellon is a global financial services company focused on helping clients manage and service their financial assets, operating in 34 countries and serving more than 100 markets. BNY Mellon is a leading provider of financial services for institutions, corporations and high-net-worth individuals, providing superior asset management and wealth management, asset servicing, issuer services, clearing services and treasury services through a worldwide client-focused team. It has $22.1 trillion in assets under custody and administration and $966 billion in assets under management, services $11.9 trillion in outstanding debt and processes global payments averaging $1.6 trillion per day. Additional information is available at www.bnymellon.com.

SOURCE BNY Mellon