The bank’s new sterling bond will be the biggest syndicated deal in the currency out of the Middle East/iStock
by Kudakwashe MuzoriwaUAE’s First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has issued over AED 3 billion bonds via two separate public issuances in three days.
André Sayegh, FAB’s Deputy Group CEO and Group Head of Corporate & Investment Banking, said, “FAB’s ability to tap both the UK and Australian markets in the same week underlines the success of FAB’s funding strategy, with our first sterling bond representing another significant milestone for the bank.”
FAB issued its debut three-year GBP 450 million (AED2.15 billion) fixed-rate bond, under its $15 billion-euro medium-term note (EMTN) Programme, marking the first and largest ever financial institution GBP issuance from the region.
The lender stated that the book was 2.8 times oversubscribed with strong participation from high-quality UK investors and the bond will be listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Furthermore, FAB also issued AUD 350 million (AED 860 million) through a Kangaroo issuance. The five-year floating-rate notes were priced at 110 basis points over the three-month bank bill swap rate (BBSW) and issued under its AUD 2 billion debt issuance programme.
The issuance marks FAB’s return to the Australian dollar market for the first time since 2014 and the bond will be listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.
“Both transactions are consistent with our strategy to diversify our investor base whilst raising cost-effective liquidity and funding,” said Sayegh.
Fitch Ratings said that global Sukuk issuance increased by six per cent in 2019 to $42.2 billion, due to the broadening range of issuers and investors.
MOST READ
CPI Financial was established in Dubai in 1999 to meet the needs of an ever-expanding financial community, offering a comprehensive portfolio of market-leading products and services tailor-made for the banking and financial services sectors.
Loading More post
