Emirates NBD is tapping Asian investors to lock in a USD 700 mn loan on very attractive terms, including a “bullet” structure with a seven-year tenor and an interest margin of 100 basis points over SOFR, Zawya reports.

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Uh, Enterprise, what’s a bullet term loan? A bullet structure allows Emirates NBD to repay the full raised amount in a single shot on the final day before maturity expires, only paying interest on a monthly basis, as opposed to other amortizing structures where principal and interest are paid regularly over time.

It’s not clear where the proceeds will go, but the 30-day availability period makes it likely that this is a refinancing, rather than proceeds for expansion, as is usually the case when a bank looks to draw down capital fast.

ADVISORS- Mizuho Bank is the coordinator, mandated lead arranger, bookrunner, underwriter and facility agent on the transaction, IFR reported.

Our take

This loan is the latest in a broader pivot from ENBD to Asian debt. The bank returned to the Dim Sum market the first time in over a decade earlier this year for a CNY 1 bn issuance, and sold USD 700 mn in five-year senior Formosa unsecured notes listed on the Taipei Exchange. In June it also tested appetite for a 10-year AUD kangaroo bond under its AUD 4 bn program.

It’s not just ENBD: Gulf issuers have been loving Asian debt markets recently, and vice versa. Borrowers in the Middle East secured USD 16 bn in syndicated loans from lenders in the Asia-Pacific so far this year, more than triple the USD 5 bn raised last year, as investors reprice US recession risks and brace for prolonged tariff volatility, we reported last week. Asian allocations to Gulf debt, on the other hand, have also jumped from 5-7% to 15-20% in the last 18 months.

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