First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has issued bonds worth over AED 3 billion via two separate public issuances in three days, marking its first-ever Sterling bond and first Kangaroo bond since 2014.
This is also the first and largest ever Financial Institution GBP issuance from the region, according to a statement issued by the bank. The three-year GBP450mn (AED2.15 billion) fixed-rate bond was issued under its US$15 billion Euro Medium Term Note, EMTN, Programme.
The statement further adds that the bond will be listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and that the book was 2.8 times oversubscribed with strong participation from UK investors.
A further AU AU$350 million (AED860 million) raised through a Kangaroo issuance marks FAB’s return to the Australian dollar market for the first time since 2014. The bond will be listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. The five-year floating-rate notes were priced at 110 basis points over the three-month bank bill swap rate, BBSW, and issued under its AU$2 billion Debt Issuance Programme, according to a WAM report.
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Andre Sayegh, FAB’s Deputy Group CEO and Group Head of Corporate and Investment Banking, said that the first Sterling bond represents a significant milestone for the bank and the bank’s ability to tap global markets such as UK and Australia underlines the bank’s successful funding strategy.
“Both transactions are consistent with our strategy to diversify our investor base whilst raising cost-effective liquidity and funding,” he said and added, “The strong levels of demand demonstrate the trust and confidence that global investors place in FAB, which is underpinned by our solid fundamentals, diversified funding base, robust liquidity, and market-leading credit profile and ratings.”
FAB, which has the strongest combined rating of Aa3/AA-/AA- by Moody’s, S&P and Fitch, respectively, also issued the region’s first dollar-denominated Sukuk of 2020, a US$500 million RegS Sukuk under its US$3.5 billion Trust Certificate Issuance Programme in January earlier this year.
