From our humble roots in St. Louis in 1996, Columbia has grown to a well-respected regional and national financial advisory firm. Columbia consistently ranks in the Top 40 financial advisory firms nationwide by volume and in the Top 10 financial advisory firms for housing transactions. Columbia is typically among the top two or three advisory firms for Kansas transactions, as well.
Columbia's principals built the firm, not by providing a one-size-fits-all approach, but by tailoring our services and our approach to the individual needs of each of the communities we serve. Creative and innovative, even a bit iconoclastic, Columbia provides the quality of advice of a major national firm with the one-on-one "boutique" client service only a smaller firm can provide.
Strategic Thinking
Our advice to our clients is based on both what is smart for today and for tomorrow.
Clear Communications
We boil down complex concepts into simple decision points for our clients.
Comprehensive Understanding
We strive to understand our clients' businesses in-depth. This results in high-quality advice and solid financial management.
Team Approach
Our clients have access to the full range of expertise and abilities within our firm on every engagement.
Thorough Document Review
Our attention to the transaction documents ensures our clients actually get the deal they are expecting
Independence
We are an independent, financially-stable firm with no debt, no outside partners and no ties to broker-dealers. Our advice is in the best interest of one entity...our client.
Proven Abilities
The advice we provide carries the strength of our significant expertise and depth of knowledge.
Case Studies
The case studies below illustrate the many ways in which Columbia Capital makes a difference for its clients.
Case Study: Solving the Right Problem
Due to inefficient structuring of a portion of the City of Branson, Missouri's Tourism Tax Bonds in 1998, the City was required to fund a significant portion of a reserve fund with cash. An underwriting firm approached the City with an idea: advance refund $40 million of outstanding debt, restructure the debt service and release those funds back to the City.
After evaluating the situation and the underwriting firm's proposal, Columbia Capital, serving as Branson's financial advisor, discovered a way to refund $1.6 million of a single maturity, resulting in the release of the $1 million desired and saving the City an estimated $0.3 million in transaction costs that would have resulted from a larger transaction. In addition, the City maintains the legal ability to advance refund all $18 million in bonds outstanding at some point if it provides an economic advantage to do so. This was accomplished by placing a redemption provision on the refunding bonds which allows the bonds to be called anytime in the future. (March 2007)
Case Study: Matching Assets and Liabilities
Working with its long-term client, the Kansas Turnpike Authority, Columbia advised on a transaction that resulted in a current refunding of fixed rate bonds to auction rate securities. The Authority desired to create a variable component to its $250 million overall debt portfolio, with interest rate risk hedged by its very strong cash position. Given that the Authority did not have a need for new money bonds, Columbia explored a number of alternatives for conversion of its existing fixed rate debt into a variable or synthetic variable mode. When interest rate swaps proved to be problematic from a legal perspective, Columbia proposed using a current refunding to generate the variable exposure. Gathering market intelligence, Columbia recommended the Authority issue seven-day auction rate securities which traded at the time of issuance through more traditional low-floaters by 10 basis points or more, despite the elimination of put risk. (October 2006)
Case Study: Targeted Restructuring
Due to its increasing use of interest rate-competitive State Revolving Loan funds, the City of Topeka's Combined Utility (water, wastewater and stormwater) began to experience a "hump" in overall debt service, including both its 30-year revenue bonds and the 20-year SRF loans. Taking advantage of advantageous market conditions and the eight-year call Columbia included in the structure of the refunded bonds, Columbia developed a refunding plan of finance that will provide present value savings in excess of the City's targets, a reshaping of its total utility revenue debt service, and a reduction in maximum annual debt service. Columbia also employs a short call (five years) on the City's general obligation debt. (September 2006)
Case Study: Maximization of Call Value
The Combined Utility restructuring mentioned above includes both current and advance refunding components. Columbia structured the refunding transactions to front-load principal redemptions on the advance refunding component, while back-loading the current refunding component. In addition to the eight-year optional redemption on the refunding bonds, Columbia's structure maximizes the value of the call on the new bonds, while minimizing the potential impact of the City's use of the "bite of the apple" on the advance refunding component. (September 2006)
Case Study: Developing a Capital Program
Engaging Columbia in mid-2006, the City of De Soto, Kansas, asked for Columbia's assistance in developing a multi-year capital program. Columbia worked closely with De Soto's city administrator to provide financial consulting and CIP model development throughout the process. Columbia's input into the process included providing rough targets for annual and long-term debt affordability; creating a dynamic budget model reflecting proposed CIP levels and identifying the level of property tax support required at those levels; working with bond counsel to overcome legal hurdles to implementation; assisting the City in developing a charter ordinance to streamline its authority for debt issuance; developing a debt calendar; and managing a process culminating in a bond and note issue planned for August 2007. (2006-2007)
Case Study: Creating an Economic Development Sustainability Program
Columbia Capital, in conjunction with two other firms, was engaged by the City of Kansas City, Missouri, to provide a comprehensive review of its economic development programs and practices with the goal of ensuring the long-term sustainability of its economic development effort. Looking closely at the City's significant set of business incentives, reviewing the City's practices and those of its multiple economic development partners and analyzing the approaches of other communities, Columbia and its partners hoped to produce a paradigm shift in the City's approach to economic development programming. (2006-2007)
Subsequently, the City engaged Columbia Capital as the lead consultant on a companion project to develop an economic development and incentive policy. Columbia will lead three other consulting firms and work closely with an appointed Task Force, the public, City staff and the Mayor's office to redefine the City's approach to economic development. (2007)
Case Study: Promoting Economic Development
Approached by a representative of Major League Soccer, Columbia's client, the City of De Soto, prepared an initial profile of the community and developed a statement of interest. Successfully surviving the first round of cuts, De Soto engaged Columbia to assist in coordinating a more detailed proposal, including development of a pro forma plan of finance for the proposed project. Columbia worked closely with City staff, outside planners, engineers and architects, and bond counsel to produce a responsive and high-quality proposal. (2006)
Case Study: Building Bridges
The good news for the City of Topeka was that the voters of Shawnee County approved a dedicated sales tax, a portion of the proceeds of which would be dedicated to the reconstruction of its most significant bridge: a crumbling Works Progress Administration-era structure connecting the north and south halves of the community. The bad news was that a number of other projects had superior claims to the new taxes and that an agency created via intergovernmental cooperation agreement would be the sole administrator of the funds.
While the City could have issued GO-backed or double-barreled bonds, it felt that such a move would result in a GO bond rating downgrade. Based upon the analysis and recommendations prepared by Columbia, the City pursued issuance of $30.6 million in sales-tax backed bonds.
Columbia developed both the plan of finance and an outline of the legal structure of the flow of funds from consumer to the Kansas Department of Revenue to the City and County to the third-party administrator back to the City and finally to the City's bond trustee. The structure not only resulted in an A1 bond rating and the financing of the bridge and other priority projects, it received the unanimous approval of the Topeka City Council and the governing board of the third-party agency comprised of both City and County elected officials. (July 2006)
Case Study: Wholesale Redevelopment of Plan of Finance
The Treasurer of the City of St. Louis, Missouri, manages the City's Parking Division which has bonding authority. A long-term Columbia Capital client, the Treasurer's Office desired to significantly restructure its outstanding parking-related indebtedness. Columbia is currently working to structure a refunding and new money transaction to accomplish the following goals: create a new master trust indenture to bring all projects to parity, thus eliminating the Treasurer's subordinate tier of bonds; generate present value savings; restructure overall debt service; and fund a portion of the construction of a new parking facility. (December 2006)