FAB raises EUR 750 mn from oversubscribed green bond sales

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) is back in the debt market, and investors showed up. The UAE’s largest lender by assets saw more than EUR 1.1 bn in orders for its EUR 750 mn, three-year green bond offering, Zawya reports.

Pricing tightened significantly from initial price thoughts in the mid-swap plus 100-105 bps area to a final spread of mid-swap plus 75 bps. The senior unsecured bond was priced at par with a reoffer yield of 3.535% and a coupon of 3.5302%.

Next up: The issuance, expected to be rated Aa3 by Moody’s and AA- by S&P and Fitch, will be issued under FAB’s USD 20 bn Euro Medium Term Note Program and listed on the London Stock Exchange. Proceeds will be used to finance or refinance eligible green projects under the bank’s Sustainable Finance Framework.

IN CONTEXT- The oversubscribed issuance is a welcome sign for Gulf borrowers who have slowly been finding their way back to debt markets after a war-induced slowdown. FAB raised USD 700 mn in a five-year senior unsecured sukuk in May, while Dubai Islamic Bank has already tapped markets twice this month, including through a USD 1 bn AT1 sukuk.