Mashreq prices CNH 1 bn Dim Sum offering + FAB settles first MENA digital green bond

Our friends at Mashreq raised CNH 1 bn in their inaugural Dim Sum bond offering, according to a press release. The three-year senior unsecured notes carry a fixed coupon of 2.50%, tightening from initial price guidance in the 2.95% area. Orders from regional and international investors peaked at CNH 2.3 bn, making the offering more than 2x oversubscribed. It is the bank’s first public issuance in the offshore renminbi market.

How it was done: Mashreq announced the issuance on 13 October and held a one-day virtual investor marketing exercise. The bank says the two-day execution helped it maintain pricing discipline while limiting its exposure to market volatility.

Next up: The paper will be listed on both Nasdaq Dubai and the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

ADVISORS- Bank of China, China International Capital Corporation (CICC), China Securities Co. (CSC), Guotai Junan International (GTJAI), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), and Standard Chartered were joint lead managers and bookrunners for the issuance.

IN CONTEXT- Dim Sum bonds are still rare in the region, with Gulf issuers dipping into the market every now and then since Emirates NBD became one of the region’s first issuers. Bonds are denominated in offshore RMB (CNH) and issued outside mainland China, and a firmer CNH is making them more of a mainstream financing option. The UAE and China have also recently signed an MoU to deepen cooperation across capital markets, asset management, and investor connectivity.

ALSO- FAB settles MENA’s first digital green bond: FAB issued and settled AED 1 bn of three-year digitally native green notes, according to a statement. It is the first digital green bond from the MENA region. The notes, which mature in October 2029, were priced at 5.75% and settled yesterday through Euroclear’s distributed ledger-based Digital Financial Market Infrastructure (D-FMI). Proceeds will fund projects with environmental or climate-related benefits.

The notes will be FAB’s second digital bond listed on the ADX, after its inaugural digital issuance in 2025. FAB remains the only issuer with digital bonds on the bourse. FAB and Standard Chartered structured the notes, while Emirates NBD, FAB, HSBC, ICBC (Asia), and Standard Chartered were joint lead managers.