QNB Group closes $3.5b loan facility
MUSCAT: QNB Group, the largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa region, announced the successful closing of the syndication for its $3.5 billion, three-year, senior unsecured term, loan facility. The syndication was well supported by 21 international banks and the facility has been upsized due to a strong demand in the market. The new loan facility will be used for general corporate purposes.
Fully underwritten
The syndication was fully underwritten by nine underwriters, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch International Limited (BAML), The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Limited, Barclays Bank PLC, Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, Intesa Sanpaolo S.P.A., QFC Branch, Mizuho Bank Limited (Mizuho), Standard Chartered Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and United Overseas Bank Limited. BAML was mandated as the Documentation Co-ordinator, while Mizuho was mandated as the Syndication Co-ordinator and Facility Agent.
The group also announced that it had already repaid, in full, the earlier $3 billion syndicated loan prior to issuing the above-men- tioned new loan facility.
“QNB group is very happy at the successful refinancing and upsizing of the existing syndicated loan facility, which is a reflection of the strong demand by top-tier global banks that want to continue to partner with QNB group. This further reflects the investor community’s confidence in the group’s strategy and the strength of our financial position, particularly following the recent announcement of our robust 2017 financial results,” QNB Group CEO Ali Al Kuwari said.