South African lender Absa Bank, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Standard Chartered Bank, have signed a $500 million syndicated loan, that will be used for general corporate purposes including trade-related finance.
The Facility has an initial tenor of two years, subject to an extension option available at the Borrower’s discretion to extend the maturity by a further one-year at the end of the initial two-year tenor. The Facility pays a margin of 1.05% per annum.
“The need for this syndicated loan is to fund the growth in our U.S. dollar lending both in South Africa and our Regional Operations, in support of our group strategy,” said Jason Quinn, Absa Group’s financial director.
The repayment period is two years at a 1.05% interest 1.05% per annum. Absa has a one-year extension option available at the borrower’s discretion.
The Facility launched on 29th May 2019 to select financial institutions, at a launch amount of US$ 300,000,000 (subject to increase).
Absa subsequently increased the transaction to US$ 500,000,000, in light of the significant commitments received.
