The bookrunners on the deal were BNP Paribas, Calyon and Deutsche Bank, with Arab Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi, Gulf International Bank and National Bank of Abu Dhabi acting as mandated lead arrangers.

The debt is understood to be priced at around 85 basis points, a 20 basis points premium over the original facility (MEED 17:12:07).

Just a few days earlier, on 19 May, Zain chief executive Saad al-Barrak said that the firm may sell shares worth up to $5bn on the Bahrain Stock Exchange in 2009, followed by a listing on a European exchange.