URSA Bank, Russian Federation USD 63 Million Syndicated Term Loan Facility Arranged by ICICI Bank UK PLC & Mashreq
05 June 2007
Dubai, UAE : On May 23, 2007 ICICI Bank UK PLC and Mashreq successfully signed a USD 63 Million syndicated term loan facility for URSA Bank. The facility has a tenor of 1 year and pays a margin of 1.50% p.a over LIBOR. Proceeds will be utilized by URSA Bank for trade finance purposes.
This is a landmark transaction for URSA Bank, being the debut transaction after merger of Sibacadembank & Uralvneshtorgbank, and also for setting benchmark pricing for the bank.
Alpha Bank and National Bank of Dubai joined the transaction as Senior Mandated Lead Arranger before the launch of the transaction in general syndication.
The facility was launched at USD 25 Million and due to the very positive response from the market was closed at USD 63 Million, an oversubscription of 2.5 times. The Arrangers were successful in attracting a number of new investors for the borrower, with 75% of total participations coming from Asia.
To celebrate the conclusion of this successful transaction, a commemorative event was held in Dubai, attended by senior management officials from URSA Bank, ICICI Bank UK PLC, Mashreq and delegates from a number of participating banks.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Majid Husain, Executive Vice President and Head of Foreign Institutional Division in Mashreq commented “Mashreq is the pioneer of introducing Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in the Middle East region and has the potential to lead arrange such transactions. With improving risks and pressure on pricing, regional banks have to keep diversifying their asset books. Mashreq will also continue its forward looking strategies for Financial Institutions in the CIS region and explore more possibilities for inter regional cooperation.”
Also present on the occasion, Mr. Aakash Desai, Assistant General Manager, ICICI Bank commented “This is a landmark transaction for URSA Bank. Since July 2006, ICICI Bank has concluded twelve Asia focused syndicated loan transactions for key Central and Eastern Eurpean banks. Our strong track record, franchise and network of partner banks in Asia enable us to provide issuers with access to a fast growing investor market.”
- Ends-
About URSA Bank
URSA Bank is a full-service bank occupying a leading position in its regional banking markets. URSA Bank is headquartered in Novosibirsk, Russia and has the second largest network of branches of any bank in the Urals and Siberian Federal Districts. The Bank has 22 regional headquarters and 234 branches, three international representative offices and approximately 7,000 employees.
URSA Bank was created as a result of the combination of Sibacadembank and Uralvneshtorgbank. The foreign currency rating for the Bank was recently upgraded to Ba3 by Moody’s.
About Mashreq
Mashreq is the largest private bank in the UAE and also the second oldest. Founded in 1967 as Bank of Oman, the bank has played a pioneering role in the industry, particularly in retail banking. Among its many firsts it was the first to launch such products as travellers’ cheques, credit cards and ATMs.
It is invariably among the highest performing banks in the region. Last year it recorded a Net Profit of over US$470 million from a Total Operating Income of $844 million. At the end of last year its Total Assets stood at $15.2 billion
Mashreq has received numerous international awards, particularly for quality management. According to independent research it has more ISO certifications than any bank in the region by a wide margin.
As a leading financial Institution in the UAE Mashreq aims to be world class in every facet of its business, including its social responsibility to the community it serves. Towards this goal the bank pays particular attention to recruiting, training, developing and retaining UAE National employees.
For further information, please contact:
Saad Hakim, Iman Issa & Pooja Keswani
PR Manager, Mashreq Gulf Hill & Knowlton
Tel: 04 6083707 Tel: 04 334 4930
Email: SaadHa@mashreqbank.com
Email: iman.issa@hillandknowlton.com
Email: Pooja.Keswani@hillandknowlton.com