Commercial Bank launches $750mn bond; pricing at tight end

Commercial Bank of Qatar has launched a $750mn, five-year bond offer that was set to be priced later yesterday, with pricing at the tight end of guidance because of strong investor demand.

The transaction was set to be priced at a spread of 117 basis points over mid-swaps, a document from lead managers said, at the tight end of a revised range of 117-120 bps over the same benchmark given earlier yesterday.

Pricing was revised twice yesterday, with initial guidance given as in the area of 135 bps before it was changed to 120-125 bps over the benchmark.

Investor orders worth more than $3bn have been placed for the transaction, an earlier update from lead managers said.

Bank of America-Merrill Lynch, HSBC and Morgan Stanley are arranging the bond sale.

Commercial Bank follows a string of UAE borrowers accessing the international debt market as favourable market conditions have pushed borrowing costs to record lows. Issuance is however expected to taper off ahead of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, which starts at the end of June.