Middle East

Foreign ministers from across the Gulf meet in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the continued tensions with Qatar, as bank analysts predicted the Saudi Arabia-led coalition against Qatar will reject the country’s response to its demands.

Turkey’s first privately owned development and investment bank Turkiye Sinai Kalkinma Bankasi (TSKB) has refinanced a loan which matured last Wednesday with a $297m facility from a syndicate of 18 banks.

Investor hedging for turbulent Brexit negotiations and US president Donald Trump’s legislative agenda has aided the growth of gold and currency derivatives contracts at the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX), its CEO said on Sunday.

Standard Bank is planning to launch a $750m syndicated loan, and hopes to drum up enough interest to enlarge it to $1.25bn.

Turk Eximbank, which wrapped up a €412m refinancing in March, has turned its attention to the Asian loan market for a fresh money €300m borrowing.

Isbank raised $500m with the 10th deal from a Turkish financial this year with a tidy though somewhat lacklustre trade. While EM bankers suggested it was evidence of some Turkish bank fatigue among investors, the leads said the trade was symptomatic of the weaker market backdrop.

Isbank opened books on Thursday for the 10th deal from a Turkish financial this year, offering a higher than usual new issue premium in the process to account for softer market conditions. While the deal is expected to be well absorbed, for some on the buyside, the risks of an Isbank tier two are too much.

GarantiBank International (GBI), a Dutch subsidiary of Turkiye Garanti Bankasi, has signed a $250m loan that was oversubscribed by 19 banks, according to a banker on the deal.

Etisalat has been given until Friday to transfer all its shares in Etisalat Nigeria to a syndicate of 13 Nigerian banks, after talks on restructuring a $1.2bn loan from 2013 fell through.

Arabtec Holding, the United Arab Emirates’ largest listed construction firm, said on Tuesday its rights issue was fully subscribed, raising Dh1.5bn ($408m) for a recapitalisation.

Turkey’s Isbank has hired banks to arrange an 11 year non-call six Basel III compliant tier two trade, continuing a spate of riskier debt issuance from Turkey’s banks this year.

Etisalat Nigeria is in the “advanced stage” of its negotiations with 13 local banks over the restructuring of a $1.2bn loan taken out in 2013, according to the company.