MOSCOW, November 9 (RIA Novosti) - Sberbank [RTS : SBER], Russia's state-owned savings bank, said Thursday it has set the lowest ever borrowing cost by a Russian issuer, and has established higher standards for Russia's future placements on the international credit market.
Sberbank said its $750 million Eurobond issue on November 3 with a 5-year maturity and a coupon rate of 5.93% of par value p.a., priced at 80 basis points above midswaps, raised high demand from investors, with $1.4 billion secured from 108 accounts in the final allocation in Seoul, Taipei, Vienna, Copenhagen, Athens, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and London.
Barclays Capital, Deutsche Bank and Merrill Lynch were the lead managers in the transaction.
Hans-Joerg Rudloff, Chairman of Barclays Capital told RIA Novosti: "I think the importance of this event is that once again Sberbank exercised its leading role in establishing new yield levels and cost levels in the market. This issue was priced considerably lower than the last secondary market prices."
"It just proves that the demand is there and the people consistently give Russia and Russian credits cheaper cost. It always needs a market leader. And Sberbank by its size and its role is the most important bank in Russia so far and because of the state ownership has to play a leading role as much as other companies in other countries do. It is always up to them to come out with the best terms and they have to choose a right moment, right maturity etc.," he said.
"They ... opened a door for other Russian credits to come at very good price levels. They proved that the international investors take a different view from the Western press. If you read the Western press in general, there is a lot of criticism of Russia. But thousands of investors and traders validate all the Russian efforts to improve the economy, to use money carefully, to run a very controlled state budget, to privatise their companies."
"It is investors who really vote. The press which is not always Russian-friendly can write what they want, but the reality and the truth you find in the capital markets."
