New Africa Finance lifts slightly in after trade; Africa’s Ecobank prices tight to talk; Asia primary active

By Rebecca Melvin

New York, April 11 – Africa Finance Corp.’s newly priced 4 3/8% notes edged up slightly on Thursday after the Lagos, Nigeria-based infrastructure financing company priced $650 million of the seven-year notes on Wednesday.

A London-based trader quoted the new Africa Finance paper at 99 3/8 bid, 99½ offered. That compared to a reoffer price of 99.257.

The new notes with an initial yield of 4½% were priced in tandem with a tender for African Finance’s $750 million of 4 3/8% notes due 2020.

Also for the Africa region, which has had a notably quiet primary market so far this year, Ecobank Transnational Inc. priced $450 million of 9½% five-year notes on Thursday.

The Rule 144A and Regulation S notes priced at 99.029 to yield 9¾%, or a spread of U.S. Treasuries plus 744.6 basis points. Pricing was tightened from initial talk in the high 9% area, while deal size was set in the middle of an expected range of $400 million to $500 million.

The proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, which will include the refinancing of a portion of Ecobank’s existing bank debt.

Lome, Togo-based Ecobank is a pan-African lender serving wholesale and retail customers in West and Central Africa.

Meanwhile, final pricing emerged on Russia-focused GTLK Europe Capital DAC’s $500 million of 5.95% six-year notes, which priced Wednesday at 99.132 for a yield of 6 1/8%, or mid-swaps plus 379 bps. By way of comparison, the Ecobank deal priced at a spread of mid-swaps plus 741.4 bps.

Pricing of GTKL came tight to initial talk for a yield of 6 3/8% to 6½%.

Orders for the new paper topped $1.5 billion.

The issuer is a subsidiary of GTLK Europe DAC, which is owned by State Transport Leasing Co. PJSC (STLC), and both entities are guarantors of the notes.

The proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes and to repay existing debt.

GTLK is a subsidiary of State Transport Leasing, a Yamalo-Nenets, Russia provider of credit to industries.

Among notable deals from the Asia region, news of CK Hutchison International (19) Ltd.’s $1.5 billion of notes in two tranches hit the tape. The Hong Kong-based conglomerate affiliate priced $750 million of 2024 notes with a 3¼% coupon and $750 million of 2029 notes with a 3 5/8% coupon.

The proceeds will be used to refinance dollar-denominated debt.

The company is involved in investment holding activities for CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd., a multinational conglomerate based in Hong Kong.

PT Bank Mandiri (Persero) Tbk. priced $750 million of 3¾% notes due 2024 which were distributed under Regulation S as part of the lender’s $2 billion euro medium-term note program.

Based in Jakarta, Bank Mandiri is Indonesia’s largest bank in terms of assets.

China-based real estate developer China Evergrande Group priced $450 million of 10% notes due 2023. Proceeds will be used to refinance existing debt and for capital expenditures, with the remainder for general corporate purposes.

And Shanghai-based real estate developer Greenland Holdings Corp. Ltd. subsidiary Lv’an Chuangxing Ltd. priced $200 million of 6 3/8% bonds due April 15, 2020. A subsidiary of China Fortune Financial subscribed for up to $15.9 million of the bonds.

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