Turk Telekom plans to issue conventional and/or Islamic bonds (sukuk) abroad worth up to US$1bn.
The Turkish incumbent said in a short statement that one or more debt instruments will be issued within a year of obtaining approval from the Turkish…
Turk Telekom plans to issue conventional and/or Islamic bonds (sukuk) abroad worth up to US$1bn.
The Turkish incumbent said in a short statement that one or more debt instruments will be issued within a year of obtaining approval from the Turkish Capital Markets Board. The Istanbul-based telco said the relevant application to the authority will be made “in due course”.
The debt instruments will have a maximum maturity of ten years and be in Turkish liras, a foreign currency, or a combination.
Barclays Bank, BNP Paribas, Emirates NBD Capital, JP Morgan Securities and Standard Chartered Bank have been mandated for the issuance.
Since March, Turk Telekom has secured about US$750m in four different loans, the most recent being a US$100m three-year loan agreement with RBS. Signed in July, the loan came shortly after the telco submitted a US$530m non-binding bid to buy 53% of local DTH firm Digiturk. However, last month, Turkish media giant Dogan Group made a US$742m non-binding offer for the stake, seized by the state after owner Cukurova missed certain commercial repayments.
Turk Telekom has said it would be open to buying the whole of Digiturk, but the state’s Savings Deposit Insurance Fund, now in control of the 53% stake, has been cited as saying the telco’s offer for half of the company is too low. Providence Equity Partners owns the rest of Digiturk.
