Latest news with #CitiBank
Zawya
5 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Kuwait's Boubyan Bank launches $500mln senior unsecured 5-year sukuk
Kuwait's Boubyan Bank has launched its $500 million senior unsecured Reg S 5-year sukuk, with a spread set at CT5+95bps. The initial price guidance came in the area of T+130bps. The order book is $1.7 billion, excluding JLM interest. The issuance is rated A by Fitch, in line with the lender's rating by Fitch and S&P, and A2 by Moody's. The Wakala / Murabaha structure has a fixed rate coupon, paid semi-annually. The settlement date is June 4. Banks mandated include Standard Chartered, HSBC, and Citi Bank, which have been appointed global coordinators on the issuance. Arab Banking Corporation, Boubyan Capital Investment Company, KFH Capital Investment Company, Warba Bank, KIB Invest, Dubai Islamic Bank, SMBC Bank International, The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector, along with Standard Chartered, HSBC, and Citi Bank have been appointed joint lead managers. The structure will be issued under Boubyan's $3 billion Trust Certificate Issuance Programme and will trade on Euronext Dublin. (Writing by Bindu Rai, editing by Seban Scaria)
Zawya
7 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Oman: OETC completes full repayment of $1bln "Lamar" bonds
MUSCAT: Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC), a member of the Nama Group, has announced the full repayment of its $ 1 billion "Lamar" bonds, which were issued in 2015 to finance strategic infrastructure projects in the electricity transmission sector across the Sultanate of Oman. This milestone marks a pivotal moment in the company's financial journey, underscoring its commitment to governance excellence, financial sustainability and a long-term strategic vision aligned with national energy objectives. Citi Bank, which coordinated the repayment process, confirmed that this achievement reflects the robustness of OETC's financial structure and the strength of its global relationships with financial partners. The successful settlement also enhances the company's credit profile in regional and international markets, positioning it to secure new financing opportunities to support current and future projects crucial to Oman's energy transition. Commenting on this occasion, Ali al Reesi, Chief Financial Officer at OETC, stated: "Our successful repayment of these financial obligations clearly demonstrates our financial stability and the depth of our relationships with leading international financial institutions. Over the past years, we've maintained a commitment to transparency and financial discipline, allowing us to preserve high credit ratings with global agencies." Al Reesi added: "We've invested in upgrading our infrastructure and strengthening the resilience of the national transmission network to keep pace with the growing demand for electricity in Oman. Today, we proudly mark the full repayment of bonds issued a decade ago, a testament to the effectiveness of our financial and operational strategies; and our commitment to supporting the national energy transition goals." 2022 © All right reserved for Oman Establishment for Press, Publication and Advertising (OEPPA) Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Times of Oman
26-05-2025
- Business
- Times of Oman
OETC successfully completes full repayment of $1bn 'Lamar' bonds
Muscat: Oman Electricity Transmission Company (OETC) a member of the Nama Group has announced the full repayment of its $1 billion "Lamar" bonds, which were issued in 2015 to finance strategic infrastructure projects in the electricity transmission sector across the Sultanate of Oman. This milestone marks a pivotal moment in the company's financial journey, underscoring its commitment to governance excellence, financial sustainability, and a long-term strategic vision aligned with national energy objectives. Citi Bank, which coordinated the repayment process, confirmed that this achievement reflects the robustness of OETC's financial structure and the strength of its global relationships with financial partners. The successful settlement also enhances the company's credit profile in regional and international markets, positioning it to secure new financing opportunities to support current and future projects crucial to Oman's energy transition. Commenting on this occasion, Ali Al Reesi, Chief Financial Officer at OETC, stated: "Our successful repayment of these financial obligations clearly demonstrates our financial stability and the depth of our relationships with leading international financial institutions. Over the past years, we've maintained a commitment to transparency and financial discipline, allowing us to preserve high credit ratings with global agencies." Al Reesi added: "We've invested in upgrading our infrastructure and strengthening the resilience of the national transmission network to keep pace with the growing demand for electricity in Oman. Today, we proudly mark the full repayment of bonds issued a decade ago, a testament to the effectiveness of our financial and operational strategies, and our commitment to supporting the national energy transition goals." It is worth mentioning that OETC, a member of Nama Group, is the only company responsible for the transmission and control of electricity across the Sultanate of Oman's network. The electricity is transmitted from production stations to distributed load centers in the governorates. The transmission network operates at a voltage of 132kV and above to cover most of the governorates in Oman, whether in the north or the south. Furthermore, OETC manages the interconnection lines between Oman and the GCC interconnection network, which operates at a voltage of 220kV.
Khaleej Times
26-05-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Dubai: Gold prices drop in early trade as global tensions ease slightly
Gold prices slipped Dh1 per gram at the opening of the markets in Dubai on Monday. At 9am UAE time, 24-karat fell to Dh403.75 per gram compared to Dh404.75 per gram at the close of the markets over the weekend. Among the other variants, 22-karat, 21-karat, and 18-karat fell to Dh373.75, Dh358.25 and Dh307.25 per gram, respectively. Spot gold was trading at $3,350.2 per ounce, down 0.25 per cent as US President Donald Trump extended the EU tariff deadline to July 9. Earlier, Trump had threatened to impose a 50 per cent tariff on the European Union from June 1. The yellow metal has been trading on the higher side due to the tariff war between the US, China and other major trading partners. Citi bank has also revised its short-term gold price target upward to $3,500 per ounce due to tariff escalation and geopolitical risks. It said in its latest note that it sees precious metal consolidating between $3,100 and $3500 per ounce, up from its previous estimate of $3,000 to $3,300 per ounce. Linh Tran, a market analyst at said market sentiment currently leans toward a "soft landing" scenario for the US economy. 'As a result, investors may be rebalancing their defensive positions, triggering profit-taking in gold after a strong three-day rally. However, gold's pullback remains contained within technical boundaries, reflecting that the selling pressure is temporary rather than a signal of a trend reversal,' said Tran.
Irish Independent
23-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
SMEs ‘need all the help they can get' with GDPR and Dora rules, says SumUp compliance chief
Claire Gillanders added: 'When you're struggling to stay afloat, it can be hard to keep up with new regulations and rules.' Ms Gillanders works with Irish SMEs to help them manage their finances and stay on top of new regulations around issues such as risk management and cyber security. 'It's evident that small businesses are struggling – with the cost of living increasing and the cost of running a business higher than ever. Especially with the really small merchants that we work with, it can be super challenging,' she said. 'These businesses are ready for new regulations, it's just challenging because a lot of them would be one-man bands trying to juggle all the aspects of running a business, which is harder than ever now.' Ms Gillanders expects that AI, GDPR regulations and Dora, which came into effect this year, will be some of the greatest challenges. Dora, or the Digital Operational Resilience Act, are new regulations for tech and financial companies to prevent cyber risks through clear-cut rules around risk management, classification and reporting of cyber incidents. 'My background is in risk management – my philosophy is that you can't manage what you don't know about. For SMEs who have staff, creating awareness around those requirements and the importance of following them can be really important,' she said. 'The biggest impact of getting these regulations right can be the question of trust – customers need to trust the tools you offer them, it's about being able to rely on your payment-service provider. If a business fails and that trust is broken, it's really hard to get it back.' In her role, Ms Gillanders supports product-development teams and technology teams in fintech organisations to understand their obligations. She thinks an important step is to ensure companies are aware of the resources available to them. 'We need to focus on helping SMEs understand what resources are already available to them – it's all there online, business owners can network and find those tools that will help them,' she said ADVERTISEMENT 'Going forward, businesses also need to catch up on AI governance. We also need to look at data privacy and security, to ensure that customers are comfortable if they're using these tools to manage compliance.' SumUp's work to bring companies up-to-date with these regulations falls under its 'merchant care' services. Having spent over four years working on the risk-management strategy SumUp offers, Ms Gillanders finds that fintech is changing as a sector. 'The idea of fintech really appeals to me. I've run a small business as a hairdresser, I've worked across different sides of the corporate banking world at the Bank of Ireland, CitiBank and PTSB before I joined SumUp in 2020,' she said. 'I think the sector is changing, there's a real focus on women, and ensuring that diversity and inclusion is here to stay. Ultimately, that helps us stay ahead of the curve.'
