Even as international lines of credit remain tight in the wake of the subprime crisis, Emirates Bank International (EBI) has signed a $1.5 billion (approximately Dh5.5 billion) club loan facility with 15 international banks, according to a statement.

This deal is likely to remain as the last major deal by Emirates Bank as it has already concluded its merger with the National Bank of Dubai (NBD) to become Emirates NBD. The shares of Emirates NBD are already listed on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM).

The facility has a maturity of five years and the proceeds will be used for general financing purposes. The deal was signed for a margin of 25 basis points above Libor.

This deal signed by 15 banks is considered to be one of the largest transactions in the Middle East for a financial institution and highlights the confidence in EBI's credit standing and in Dubai, as the financial centre for the GCC.

The banks that participated in the deal include ABN Amro Bank, Bank of America, The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas, Commerzbank AG, Deutsche Bank AG, Dresdner Kleinwort, HSBC Bank Middle East, ING Wholesale Banking, Mizuho Corporate Bank, Raiffeisen Zentralbank österreich AG, The Royal Bank of Scotland, Standard Chartered Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and ING Wholesale Banking.

While Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation acted as mandated lead arrangers, ING Wholesale Banking has acted as facility agent and coordinator of the deal. John Eldredge, general manager group treasury and markets said the deal was planned before the summer. "We are pleased that our core banking relationships had the confidence and foresight to make this such a successful transaction," he added.

Stating that the pricing EBI got was very attractive in a difficult market situation like the current period, Tony Bush, division head, international banking and syndications, said the proceeds of this facility will enable the bank to maintain its lending momentum as the leading UAE banking group.

EBI, based in Dubai, is part of the Emirates NBD banking group with consolidated assets in excess of $53 billion, making it the largest financial group in the GCC.

By Amit Chettupuzha

© The Business Weekly 2007

 

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