The Debt Management Office (DMO) of the Ministry of Finance, can report today that all banks participating in the loan confirmed their acceptance of the terms. This represents the conclusion of another successful stage in the amendment, repricing and extension of the Kingdom’s 2016’s USD 10 billion international syndicated loan facility. RfPs were sent to the 14 relationship banks that participated in the 2016 transaction in addition to a group of financial institutions who have sought to join the Kingdom’s core bank group.
There has been an exceptional response to this process from the global bank market, from both existing holders and new banks. Given the exceptional response to this process, the total facility size will be upscaled by USD 6 billion to USD 16 billion.
In response to the strong global demand for Shariah compliant issuances from the Kingdom, a significant Islamic tranche will be introduced to the transaction, demonstrating and supporting the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 goal of becoming the leading Islamic finance hub.
The consistent and prudent steps taken by the Kingdom over the past two years to realize the Vision 2030 via the Fiscal Balance Program and other economic reforms have been reflected in the scale and nature of the global market response to this benchmark transaction. Pricing for the revised facility, will be set at a margin representing a 30% reduction from levels set in 2016.
The DMO is currently finalizing the documentation process for the transaction and intends to close the financing by mid-March.
Commenting on the successful outcomes of the transaction, H.E. Mohammed Al Jadaan, Minister of Finance said “The DMO successfully led and coordinated with our partner financial institutions on this strategic financing. We are pleased that the transaction, with its increased size and enhanced terms, not only reflects the global banking community’s recognition of the strengthening of the Saudi economy, but is also a further step in the realization of the DMO and Ministry of Finance’s ambitions to achieve a prominent position for the Kingdom in the international financial markets. This also illustrates the Ministry of Finance’s role as part of Vision 2030’s ambition to create a global investment powerhouse.”