South Asia

Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL), which sent out a request for proposals for a $750m borrowing in July, is said to be planning to raise the money from three banks on a bilateral basis, as opposed to a syndication.

Lanka Orix Leasing Company has tapped two banks to lead its debut offering in the international bond market. The Sri Lankan firm is set to hit the road from Thursday.

The Indian government has picked three banks to work on its 15% sell down in construction firm NBCC, according to sources.

The Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India (Suuti), the government agency looking to sell down its holdings in 51 companies, did the right thing when it recently revised a request for proposals after clashing with potential bidders. But the drama shows that the body should have gotten it right the first time.

Asian debt capital market bankers are advising bond issuers to hit the market sooner rather than later in September, on the back of indications from the Federal Reserve that the case for an increase in rate hike had “strengthened in recent months”.

A group of eight firms are to pitch for a place on the Indian government’s stake sale in construction company NBCC on Tuesday.

Allocations are out for the government of Sri Lanka’s $700m three year borrowing, which has more than doubled from the launch size of $300m.

The government of Sri Lanka’s three year borrowing has turned out to be a hit, allowing it to hike the loan to $700m, beyond the $500m it was eyeing after a greenshoe.

The Reserve Bank of India is allowing banks to issue offshore rupee-denominated bonds to raise Basel III tier two (T2) and additional tier one (AT1) debt, as part of a series of measures to develop the country’s fixed income and currency markets.

The Indian government has reissued a request for proposals to manage divestments in 51 companies held by its holding company after an initial RFP flagged up problems with conflicts of interest. But with the hitches now fixed, equity capital market bankers are predicting increasing interest from bidders, writes Jonathan Breen.

India’s largest bourse, the National Stock Exchange, has moved a step closer to an IPO, naming four firms as joint global co-ordinators for its domestic listing.

Motherson Sumi Systems has appointed ICICI Securities, IDFC, IIFL, JM Financial and UBS as the leads on its qualified institutional placement, which is expected to raise $400m-$450m.