LONDON: Qatar Telecom launched a $500m 15-year note at 215 basis points over 10-year US Treasuries, 35 bps inside initial guidance, IFR Markets, a unit of Thomson Reuters, reported, attributing the information to a source. The company also launched a $500m 30-year tranche at 162.5 bps over 30-year US Treasuries.
RBS, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, J P Morgan, Citigroup Inc and QNB Capital are joint lead arrangers and bookrunners on the deal.
Qtel has been raising stakes in its subsidiaries, benefiting from the state’s healthy financial position. It increased its stake in Asiacell and Wataniya last year.
The 30-year maturity appeals to US insurers and pension funds, looking to buy and hold corporate debt for the long run. The company’s last bond, a $1bn long 10-year issue in December, was oversubscribed. Qtel has expanded into more than 16 countries. It has hired J P Morgan Chase to advise it on a potential bid for Vivendi’s Maroc Telecom, a stake nearly worth $6bn based on current market price, sources told Reuters earlier in December. Reuters
