Middle East

A pair of emerging market banks placed MTNs this week. In Australian dollars, Banco del Estado de Chile printed a 10 year note on Tuesday, while on Monday, Qatar National bank placed short end dollar paper.

Burgan Bank has announced a roadshow for an additional tier one bond, following Sharjah Islamic Bank’s debut in the format.

Investment firms BlackRock and KKR have signed a $3.275bn loan to support a pipeline partnership with the United Arab Emirate’s state-owned oil company, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), according to bankers. The agreement sparked interest among market participants, who expect an increase in public-private partnerships in the Middle East energy industry, some of which are likely to be financed through traditional capital markets. Mariam Meskin reports.

The order book for Sharjah Islamic Bank’s $500m perpetual non-call six year has exceeded $5bn as investors pile into the first benchmark from the region since the end of May.

The Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait has picked banks for a dollar benchmark, following a roadshow.

Sharjah-based United Arab Bank (UAB) has raised a $195m loan from a consortium of local and European banks, as borrowers in the region continue to diversify their portfolios with international lenders.

Investors gained confidence from the defeat of Turkey's ruling AK Party in the rerun of the Istanbul municipal elections on Sunday. Asset prices have rallied, improving conditions for Turkish borrowers.

Banks pride themselves on analysing and pricing credit. But are they really just slaves to the rating agencies?

Issuance in Swedish kronor picked up this week, with three corporate issuers placing Skr6.28bn ($667.9m) across four private placements, as issuers looked to get in ahead of the midsummer break. In euros, a Dutch and French agency both placed paper, while protests in Hong Kong caused yields to spike in offshore Chinese renminbi and Hong Kong dollars.

Turkey’s banks, renowned for their resilience as borrowers to market shocks, risk paying wider margins when they refinance debt later this year, according to some bankers. The dismal outlook follows Moody’s recent downgrade of Turkey’s sovereign debt and 18 of its banks.

Saudi Arabian banks Alawwal Bank and Saudi British Bank have completed their merger. The deal is yet another bank tie-up taking place in the Gulf, as lenders strive to stay competitive. Royal Bank of Scotland, which held a stake in Alawwal, has received capital relief from the transaction.

Moody’s took the axe to Turkey’s credit rating after market close on Friday, cutting the sovereign’s rating from Ba3 to B1 in a move that has raised hackles from some international investors.