Global Investment House aims to secure $410m loan

11 September 2008
Kuwait’s Global Investment House (GIH) is aiming to raise a $410m three-year syndicated loan to finance its acquisition of a 20 per cent stake in National Bank of Umm al-Quwain (NBQ).

The deal is being arranged by BNP Paribas and WestLB, and is expected to be priced at 175 basis points over the London interbank offered rate (libor).

Bank meetings are scheduled to take place in Dubai, Singapore and Taipei beginning on 15 September, indicating the increasing role of banks from the Far East in financing Middle East deals.

In late August GIH announced it would subscribe to a AED2.36bn ($642m) convertible debt instrument, that when converted would increase NBQ’s paid-up capital by 25 per cent, to more than AED5bn) and give GIH a 20 per cent equity stake in the bank.

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