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A lease bond is a non-collateral alternative to a bank guarantee for commercial lease security.

Unlike the banks where collateral is required to obtain a bank guarantee, lease bonds are issued based off an operational and financial assessment.

Tenants access this security through a small annual fee, without the need to tie up a large amount of working capital in a bank account. Tenants are required to sign an indemnity, which is a legal contract.

In the event of a claim, the lease bond is paid unconditionally to the landlord and must be re-paid by the tenant.   

The minimum lease bond amount we can assess is $20,000, up to several million dollars.

Lease bonds are like an unsecured line of credit, with no requirement of cash collateral or any charge over a company’s or shareholder’s assets.

To secure the Lease bond, only corporate indemnities, and in some instances, shareholder guarantees, are required, which is determined by the financial assessment.

A limited indemnity and guarantee is a basic type of security. It means that the financial services partner (Assetinsue) does not hold an ownership right over your tangible assets such as properties or equipment.

Instead, the tenant’s business in the first instance, or if required, the shareholders will guarantee to repay the funds to the financial services partner (Assetinsure).

This is only applicable should the landlord claim and the bond is paid out.  This payment is limited to the amount paid to the landlord.

The shareholder’s guarantee is an extra safety net. In case the tenant’s business might not be able to repay the money paid to the landlord. Again, this repayment is only up to the amount paid to the landlord.

If your landlord claims the lease bond, they will receive payment within 24hrs, unconditionally.

Once this has been paid, you will be notified and the financial services partner Assetinsure, will contact you to repay the amount that was paid to your landlord (which is limited to the value of the bond).

Should you feel that the lease bond was wrongly claimed, you need to address this with your landlord to seek clarification.

eGuarantee’s lease bond solution provides the same level of security as a bank guarantee while taking away the inherent risks of the paper-based guarantee.

eGuarantee’s lease bond solution is issued by Assetinsure – Australia’s largest provider of surety bonds – as agent on behalf of international A+ S&P rated insurer HDI Global Specialty SE.

Though the Australian banks have historically been considered the safest option for lease security, this is often not the experience for those who actually need to claim on the guarantee.  Since they are paper-based, bank guarantees can easily be lost or defrauded, and attempts to replace and then claim or cancel them can be a laborious process that takes many weeks or months.

eGuarantee is arguably a more secure solution.

As a digital product, eGuarantee reduces human error with all documents stored and easily accessible online.

The value of the eGuarantee lease bond solution can also automatically increase in line with annual rent reviews, something bank guarantees cannot do, providing a greater level of security.

Yes, eGuarantee is already used by many of the biggest names in the commercial property sector and is accepted by over thirty leading landlords, including Dexus and Centuria. Click here to see who we work with.

Tenants pay an annual fee for a lease bond. For bonds below $200k, the fee is 5.5% p.a. Above $200k, the rate drops, and is determined by the financial assessment conducted by our financial services partner (Assetinsure) and is comparable to bank guarantee rates.

An establishment fee also applies and, in some cases, legal fees may be incurred, depending on the organisational structure and requirements.

All fees and charges are debited via Direct Debit. You will receive the full payment schedule ahead of issuance, so will be aware when annual payments are due to be taken.

Yes, absolutely – subject to landlord’s approval.

Tenants can switch to eGuarantee at any time, even mid-term if they are already locked into a lease.

This will enable the tenants to free up cash collateral or banking lines.

A financial assessment forms part of the application process. Generally, businesses need to show:

• 18 months’ profitability (seen through net profit) A strong retained earnings position
  Low levels of debt
  Adequate cash flow position
  Sufficient net tangible asset position
• No ATO arrangements or payment plans.

In some instances, shareholders may be required to support their application with a Shareholder’s Guarantee.

Applications are made online and the form takes about 10 minutes to complete, once the required documents have been collated

The initial assessment is usually completed within 2 business days. Why not start now?

We suggest allowing at least two weeks for issuance of the lease bond from the point of application.  But if required, we can facilitate issuance in as little as 5 business days, subject to fast information supply and landlord & tenant availability on the platform.

For the initial assessment, the following documents are required:

• Latest accountant-prepared annual financial statements, with prior year comparisons and full notes – finalized and signed by management
• Year-to-date management accounts (P&L and Balance Sheet pulled from accounting platform)
• Schedule of banking and non-banking financing facilities (including any overdraft facility, trade advances, business credit card, chattel mortgage)
• Group and shareholding structure
• Draft or signed Head of Agreement / Lease Agreement, if available.

No! If you’re a landlord, there’s no cost to use the eGuarantee platform.

Only tenants are charged for the use of an eGuarantee lease bond solution (through an annual premium).