Oman

Two Middle Eastern borrowers printed seven year sukuk dollar benchmarks on Wednesday, restarting the market after a few weeks of flagging issuance.

Oman has picked five banks to run the books for a seven year dollar benchmark, following an investor call scheduled for Tuesday.

The National Bank of Oman hit screens on Tuesday, raising $500m of five year paper in a market still hungry for more Middle Eastern supply.

National Bank of Oman will sell a new five year benchmark on Tuesday, following a tender offer completed on Monday.

The National Bank of Oman has launched a tender offer to buy back half of a 2019 dollar benchmark as well as announcing a roadshow for a new five year deal.

Omantel has released price guidance for its long five and 10 year dual tranche bond at a level one EM trader in London is calling “real cheap” at 100bp over the Oman sovereign curve.

Bank Muscat cut through a weaker market to raise $500m with a new five year senior bond which “all things considered went really well,” and landed flat to where a new Omani sovereign five year would come, according to a banker on the deal.

Bank Muscat has taken orders north of $1bn for its new five year Reg S dollar bond on Wednesday, allowing the leads to launch the deal at the tight end of final guidance.

Oman’s Bank Sohar has successfully closed the syndication of a $300m loan, underwritten by Bank ABC and Commerzbank in December.

Bank Muscat, Oman’s largest bank by assets and capital, has named leads for a five year dollar note.

Bank Sohar, the Omani bank, is expected to sign an oversubscribed three year loan for $300m by the end of February. Demand for the facility has been high from international banks despite the country’s rising budget deficit.

Axis Bank’s presence in the top group of a recent loan for Oman’s Bank Sohar has once again put the focus on Indian lenders’ efforts to expand their overseas balance sheets. Banks from the south Asian country see FIG deals as a safe gateway to business in unfamiliar geographies — and are keen to step up their game. Shruti Chaturvedi reports.