Turkey

Turkish bank refinancing activity has ramped up, with Ziraat Bank signing its $1bn syndicated loan on Monday after Yapi Kredi sent out a request for proposals (RFP) at the end of last week.

Turkey’s six year sovereign sukuk was priced flat to its conventional curve for the first time following the asset class’s inclusion in the JP Morgan indices, even as the country’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s bid to consolidate power is an increasingly dominant talking point.

Halkbank has hit back against claims of any wrongdoing following the arrest of its deputy CEO Mehmet Hakan Atilla, while on an investor roadshow on Monday. The bank denies any involvement in breach of US sanctions but its planned tier two bond remains on hold as the market awaits further clarity, writes Virginia Furness.

Turkey’s six year sovereign sukuk is expected to be priced flat, or even inside, its conventional curve for the first time following the asset class's inclusion in the JP Morgan indices, even as the country's president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s bid to consolidate power grabs the headlines.

Ülker, a Turkish food manufacturer, has sent out a request for proposals for a $200m syndicated loan, making it the first corporate borrower from the country to enter the market this year, according to a banker on the deal.

Halkbank's planned Eurobond issuance is on hold after Mehmet Hakan Atilla, its deputy CEO, was detained following a roadshow in the US on charges of breaching sanctions against Iran, an investor relations person at the bank told GlobalCapital on Wednesday.

Another Turkish refinancing is underway, with Ziraat Bank’s syndication due to close this week, according to a banker on the deal.

Strong fund inflows and narrowing new issue premiums brought another round of CEEMEA borrowers out of the woodwork this week as some investors sounded the alarm over market exuberance.

Turkiye Sinai Kalkinma Bankasi (TSKB) brought new flavour to the SRI bond market this week with the first ever sustainable subordinated tier two, but the deal fell short of being a major milestone as many investors who follow green bonds are not able to buy such paper. Virginia Furness reports.

The heightened prices Turkey's banks are having to pay to refinance loans has attracted more banks to the latest syndication, a €100m deal for Isbank AG.

Turkey will meet investors in the UAE next week ahead of a potential return to the dollar sukuk market, leads announced on Thursday.

Akbank closed a loan syndication on Wednesday with eight more banks joining the deal, taking the number involved to 38 and the refinancing to more than $1bn.