Ecobank Plans Sale Of $500m Eurobond

Ecobank Transnational Incorporated has revealed plans to sell $500m Eurobonds at yields that may rank among the highest from emerging markets this year.

Bloomberg reported on Thursday that talk in the market revealed that the notes were priced high nine per cent area as the bank said it planned to sell $500m of its five-year debt.

It said the information of the bank offering five-year senior unsecured notes that might be priced in the high nine per cent area was obtained from a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because they were not authorised to speak publicly about it.

Bloomberg said the funding would enable the lender to meet its general corporate obligations, including the refinancing of a portion of debt it owed banks.

According to data compiled by Bloomberg, the yields will be about the juiciest since Ecuador sold $1bn of 10-year sovereign debt at 10.75 per cent in January.

It said the yields on the securities had dropped to nine per cent as sentiment towards emerging markets improved and the government secured a $4.2bn loan package from the International Monetary Fund.

Ecobank, which reported a 44 per cent increase in net income to $328m in 2018 and a $1.8bn operating income, raised $200m in loans last year, which are due for repayment in November.

Many lenders in the country are looking to raise funding to finance their operations or increase capital reserves after a 2016 recession triggered a surge in non-performing loans and stricter accounting rules increased impairments.