Afreximbank closes $300m China Exim-backed loan
TheAfrican Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has closed its first-ever China/Taiwan specific syndicated loan with a $300-million facility guaranteed by the Export-Import Bank of China (China Exim Bank).
The five-year syndicated loan, which closed on 12 September, was only open to investors from China and Taiwan. The facility was two times oversubscribed with 16 investors and banks participating and with Standard Chartered Bank serving as the sole coordinator, book runner, and mandated lead arranger.
“This syndicated facility helps position Afreximbank to strengthen its role in the development of trade between Africa and the rest of the world, in particular China and the rest of the Far East,” said Denys Denya, the Bank’s Executive Vice President in charge of Finance, Administration and Banking Services. “The conclusion of this facility demonstrates Afreximbank’s increasing ability to attract much-needed resources into Africa and to fund trade finance related investments that will have a positive impact on Sino-Africa trade.”
Describing the high level of subscription and diversified nature of investors in the loan as evidence of strong investor confidence in Afreximbank, Mr. Denya said that the facility would help the Bank to achieve its liability management objective of reducing the cost of funds and diversifying its liability book by geography, investor type and tenor.
As part of the effort to strengthen trade ties between Africa and China, Afreximbank and China Exim Bank recently signed a $1 billion collaboration agreement to promote and finance the development of industrial parks across Africa.
On 17 May in London, Afreximbank closed a $750 million bond after achieving an order book of $3.4 billion from 290 investors, the largest ever to be achieved by the Bank in the international debt capital market.
