Russian Standard Bank Places E-series Bonds

22.07.2013
PJSC Russian Standard Bank (Kyiv, Ukraine) has completed its second bond issue this year, placing UAH 100m of E-series bonds.

PJSC Russian Standard Bank (Kyiv, Ukraine) has completed its second bond issue this year, placing UAH 100m of E-series bonds. The three-year bonds pay a quarterly coupon of 20% in the first year and have embedded put options exercisable 12 and 24 months after the placement. Similar to the D-series bonds, the latest issue is guaranteed by the parent bank, JSC Russian Standard Bank (Moscow, Russia), a leading player on the Russian consumer lending market. The bonds were underwritten by Dragon Capital, which completed the placement within a short period of time.

The Bank plans to use the proceeds to expand its retail lending programs in Ukraine. “We continue to strengthen our presence in the retail segment,” said Russian Standard Bank CEO Igor Doroshenko. “We see that our business strategy on the Ukrainian market is proving effective and has credibility among investors. Russian Standard Bank has already raised UAH 200m via bond placements since the beginning of the year, with the E-series issue sold on even better terms than we initially planned. We continue to closely monitor the domestic bond market and do not rule out returning with new offerings in line with our strategy of funding base diversification.”

Brian Best, Dragon Capital’s Managing Director, Investment Banking, commented: “We have sold UAH 200m worth of bonds for the Bank within two months, exactly as we were planning, which demonstrates the Bank’s high creditworthiness and that it has chosen the right strategy to communicate with investors. A large number of investors subscribed for the latest issue, confirming that the market for UAH-denominated bonds is gradually opening up to high-quality borrowers.”

The E-series bonds may start trading on the secondary market as soon as early August and are expected to be listed on two or three Ukrainian exchanges. Dragon Capital will support secondary liquidity in the bonds.