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| Sunday, 6 November 2005 |
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COMBank in $65 million deal by Gamini Warushamana Commercial Bank of Ceylon Limited (CBCL) entered into a landmark US$ 65 million syndicated loan facility deal while there is apparently a storm in the tea cup over the shareholdings of the bank. The HSBC arranged loan facility is the first two-year committed loan from a non-sovereign Sri Lankan corporate entity. HSBC has attracted investors to Sri Lanka at very competitive pricing, despite the longer tenure of the issue. The loan successfully established a new frontier for the offshore syndicated loan market, in spite of the fact that Sri Lanka has yet to obtain an international credit rating given the prevailing uncertainties in the political and economic fronts. However, the CBCL has been rated by Fitch Ratings as AA+ on local currency rating for implied long term unsecured senior debt. This rating is the highest among the local commercial banks. CBCL Managing Director Amitha Gooneratne said that the strong demand for the loan allowed for an increase in the size from the original US$ 50 million to US$ 65 million and pricing with a margin of 0.75 percent over a three-month US$ LIBOR. The loan facility is a syndication of ten leading banks in Asia, Middle East, Europe and USA. The over-subscription is also a clear indication of the confidence that the international investor has in Sri Lanka and the CBCL, Gooneratne said. CBCL is the premier private commercial bank in Sri Lanka. The Bank's growth rates are higher than the industry average. CBCL won "Best Bank" in the country for the seventh consecutive year from Global Finance and "Bank of the Year" for the fifth consecutive year from The Banker. CBCL is now operating in Bangladesh and the Maldives and is planning to expand offshore banking facilities targeting expatriate Sri Lankans in Middle East countries in the coming years. |
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