Serbian cableco and DTH operator SBB/Telemach has priced a €475m (US$645m) senior bond due 2020, as it taps the debt markets just a month after being sold to private equity firm KKR.
The bond was priced at par and carries a 7.875% coupon, according to…
Serbian cableco and DTH operator SBB/Telemach has priced a €475m (US$645m) senior bond due 2020, as it taps the debt markets just a month after being sold to private equity firm KKR.
The bond was priced at par and carries a 7.875% coupon, according to a spokesperson. Credit Suisse, BNP Paribas, Citigroup and Unicredit are global coordinators and bookrunners.
Founder and chairman Dragan Solak said: “Our offering represents the first high-yield bond ever executed in Serbia.
“The success of the offer is a clear sign of investor confidence in both the region in which we operate, and in the future prospects of the firm following our partnership with the global leading investment firm, KKR.”
KKR entered into a definitive agreement in October to buy the group from fellow sponsor Mid Europa Partners in a reported €1bn deal, marking the largest private equity exit in the former Yugoslavia.
It also represents KKR’s first direct investment in Southeast Europe. SBB/Telemach provides satellite and cable pay-TV services in a number of countries thanks to Mid Europa’s ‘buy and build strategy’ since it bought Serbia-based SBB in 2007.
That strategy has seen it buy and merge some 18 businesses in total, making the group Southeast Europe’s largest pay-TV provider and tripling Mid Europa’s return on investment.
KKR reportedly plans to continue the consolidating drive following its acquisition, which it expects to close early next year.
SBB/Telemach, also known as United Group, operates in Serbia, Slovenia, Bosnia, Croatia, Montenegro and Macedonia. It has around 1.7 million cable and satellite TV, broadband, fixed and mobile customers.
