Posted inBanking & Finance

Emirates NBD hails $750m bond listing amid UAE economic recovery

Bank says issuance was 2.3 times oversubscribed with a strong demand from the Middle East region

Shayne Nelson, group CEO of Emirates NBD, on Wednesday rang the market-opening bell at Nasdaq Dubai to celebrate the listing of a $750 million bond.

The listing of this additional Tier 1 Capital bond reinforces Emirates NBD’s position as the largest financial services bond issuer on Nasdaq Dubai through seven listings with a total value of $5.1 billion. 

The $750 million perpetual bond pays a coupon of 4.25 percent, the lowest pricing for a conventional Tier 1 bond from the UAE, and the second lowest from the Middle East.

The issuance was 2.3 times oversubscribed with a strong demand from the region, a statement said, which added that 64 percent of appetite came from Middle East, 12 percent each from Asia and Europe, 10 percent from UK and 2 percent from elsewhere.

Hesham Abdulla Al Qassim, vice chairman and managing director of Emirates NBD, said: “The successful issuance and listing of the second bond from Emirates NBD in 2021 underlines investor confidence in the fundamentals and prospects of the bank as one of the largest banking groups in the region, as well as the growth outlook for the UAE’s economy.

“The UAE’s vaccination drive and proactive response to Covid-19 enabled commerce to swiftly reopen and the economy remains well-positioned to expand in 2021. Emirates NBD continues to actively facilitate customers to take advantage of growth opportunities.”

Abdul Wahed Al Fahim, chairman of Nasdaq Dubai, said: “Nasdaq Dubai continues to enhance its listing infrastructure building upon the notable successes of the year 2020 that enabled us to accomplish a record year for new debt listings.

“We look forward to maintaining and strengthening our constructive framework for continuous collaboration with leading issuers and to host many significant listings in 2021 from prominent issuers in the UAE, the Middle East and globally, as economies’ recovery from the impact of Covid-19 accumulates further momentum.”

Dubai is the largest listing venue in the Middle East for US dollar denominated debt listings, with a total value of $93.126 billion.

Nelson said: “The success of our latest bond issue reflects investor confidence in the group’s sound business strategy and the economy of Dubai and the UAE. Nasdaq Dubai provides us with excellent links to investors in the region and globally, together with high public visibility.”

Follow us on

Author