Qtel, the Qatari mobile phone and fixed-line operator, has launched the syndication of a US$2bn loan that it will use to refinance an expensive forward-start loan that it took out last year.
The company has split the loan into two tranches: a US$1.25bn,…
Qtel, the Qatari mobile phone and fixed-line operator, has launched the syndication of a US$2bn loan that it will use to refinance an expensive forward-start loan that it took out last year.
The company has split the loan into two tranches: a US$1.25bn, three-year tranche paying a margin of 125bp over Libor and a US$750m, five-year tranche paying 155bp over Libor.
The forward-start loan taken out last September paid 250bp over Libor. Qtel only took it out because it wanted to guarantee that it could borrow the US$2bn until its preferred maturity date of November 2011; many corporates such as Qtel resorted to borrowing through forward-start facilities, which sacrifice price for a relatively long borrowing term, during last year’s difficult credit markets.
The telco will syndicate the new loan beyond its current line-up of 14 initial mandated lead arrangers.
Qtel started to arrange the loan with five banks. This week, it added another nine banks to its list of bookrunners: Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Barclays Capital, Citibank, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Samba, SMBC, Standard Chartered Bank, and WestLB.
On 16 April, TelecomFinance revealed that Qtel had begun to arrange a US$2bn loan with a core banking group of BNP Paribas, DBS, Qatar National Bank, RBS, and Société Générale.
Qatar National Bank also acted as Qtel’s financial adviser on the new loan.
