MDM mandates for Russian re-opening

It’s taken six months of negotiations but MDM Bank is finally on the brink of becoming the first Russian bank borrower to launch a deal into syndication this year by mandating five arrangers. The facility will have a portion provided by the International Finance Corp, while the commercial banks will bring a $175m tranche to market. Vnesheconombank, the Russian state-owned bank, is also nearing an agreement on a $1bn loan and is mulling a wider syndication. But this may well be it for Russian financial institutions deals this year, bankers said this week. Check the loans mini-site (www.euroweek/loans) for more coverage today, and read EuroWeek on Friday for additional analysis.