South African media group Naspers is reportedly seeking to raise approximately US$1.4bn of debt in order to replace a previous facility that it secured in 2009.
In an email to SatelliteFinance, Naspers confirmed it is looking at refinancing some of its…
South African media group Naspers is reportedly seeking to raise approximately US$1.4bn of debt in order to replace a previous facility that it secured in 2009.
In an email to SatelliteFinance, Naspers confirmed it is looking at refinancing some of its current debt but as the private process is currently ongoing, the company declined to comment on any of the details.
Barclays and Citigroup are believed to be the joint bookrunners on the five-year revolving credit facility, which is expected to pay 175bp over Libor.
The loan will replace a US$1.6bn forward-start loan, which extended the maturity of Nasper’s existing loans to 2013 from 2011 and re-denominated the currency from sterling to US dollars.
The facility – which was arranged by Barclays, Citigroup, Nedbank and Standard Bank – paid approximately 350bp over Libor. The financing was originally launched in November 2009 and was doubled to US$1.6bn after receiving support from more than 20 international banks.
Naspers, which focuses on satellite TV, internet and instantmessaging subscriber platforms as well as print media, is rated Baa3 by Moody’s and BBB- by Fitch Ratings.
