PORT LOUIS – The Mauritius Commercial Bank Ltd (MCB), Standard Chartered Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Europe Limited have announced the signing and successful closing of general syndication for MCB’s US$ 800 million dual tranche syndicated term loan facility.
Proceeds from the facility will be used for general
corporate purposes, including trade finance, parties to the transaction said on
Tuesday.
The statement said Mizuho Bank Ltd will be acting as facility agent on the
transaction.
Ahead of the launch of general syndication, the facility
attracted significant commitments during a successful senior syndication phase.
The facility launched general syndication on 30th January 2019, at a
launch amount of US$ 500 million.
MCB subsequently elected to upsize the transaction to US$ 800 million, in light of the significant commitments received.
The facility comprised two tranches, with the first tranche having a tenor of one year and the second having an initial tenor of two years, with a one year extension.
The deal was very well received in the loan market, with commitments in excess of US$ 1 billion. This significant over-subscription necessitated the scaling back of total commitments, even after upsizing the facility to US$ 800 million.
Twenty-four geographically diverse banks participated in the facility, reflecting MCB’s strong appeal to international investors and robust credit story.
Commenting on the facility, Raoul Gufflet, deputy chief Executive of MCB said: “We are very pleased of the keen market interest attracted by this syndication, and the support from a wide pool of lenders spanning Europe, the Middle East and Asia. It testifies of the international recognition of MCB’s investment-grade credit worthiness and confidence in the bank’s strong fundamentals and international growth prospects. The facility will support MCB in further optimising and diversifying its funding profile, whilst executing on the delivery of its domestic and African ambitions.”
Founded in 1838, MCB is the leading banking institution in Mauritius, which operates a universal banking business model and offers retail banking, corporate and institutional banking, as well as private banking and wealth management services.
MCB operates under the aegis of the MCB Group Limited. MCB group is a blue chip listed since 1989 on the local stock exchange.
It is one of the most traded stocks and the largest
listed company on the Stock Exchange of Mauritius, with a market capitalisation
of US$ 1,9 billion, representing a share of around 25 percent.
The group has a broad
and diversified stakeholder base.
