India

Power Finance Corp (PFC) has completed bookbuilding for the divestment of a 5% stake in the company by the Indian government, netting at least Rp16.76bn ($262.06m) with an offering that investors piled into.

The supply-demand dynamic for overseas syndicated loans from India so far this year is firmly in favour of demand. This has resulted in price compression that is a headache for banks but makes it a great time for Indian corporates to refinance. Borrowers should act now.

India’s Syngene International has flung open the books to its Rp5.5bn ($86.0m) IPO, with the trade bagging anchor investors including the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Government of Singapore.

Hong Kong-based banker Justin Kwok has started working CCB International in a senior ECM role, having joined the bank a few week ago, sources tell GlobalCapital Asia.

The Chinese stock market’s rapid plunge into bear territory this month has brought unexpected gains for the equity capital markets of another large emerging economy — India. ECM bankers in that country have started to see a big uptick in interest from international investors eager to park their funds in a safe haven, writes Rashmi Kumar.

Bharti Airtel is reported to be eyeing a $1bn syndicated loan to fund its acquisition of telecoms spectrum in India. Bankers are hoping the deal is not the last from the country’s telco majors, which have so far failed to come offshore for funding since the spectrum auction earlier this year, writes Shruti Chaturvedi.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone has become the first Indian bond issuer in almost two months, successfully wrapping up its debut outing on July 22. Market observers welcomed the deal as it injected some much needed variety in the China-dominated Asian bond market, but its pricing was a point of debate.

One of India’s largest port operators Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone is venturing into the international bond market for the first time, opening books for a 144A/Reg S five year on July 22.

Tata Steel is looking to reprice a $3.1bn refinancing it sealed in 2014 and has asked banks on that deal for feedback. Although the loan is not performing remarkably in secondary, the company will be able to cut costs thanks to its solid banking relationships, said a source who worked on the 2014 borrowing.

Mizuho has emerged as a frontrunner for National Thermal Power Corp’s $100m loan. The company mandated the Japanese bank for its previous fundraising.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi)’s subcommittee for developing a municipal bond market has released regulations for the instruments. While the rules provide detailed requirements for listing and issuing muni bonds, many more reforms are needed at the local government level.

The pipeline for offshore Indian loan syndications is showing signs of life, with opportunistic corporate refinancings and more borrowing by housing finance companies pushing dealflow. Bankers expect the second half of the year to be busier than a very quiet first six months, writes Shruti Chaturvedi.