City Bank secures $45m syndicated loan from Bank Muscat

The City Bank has recently secured a $45 million syndicated loan arranged by Bank Muscat of Oman to finance its trade transactions.

The transaction, which was initially launched for $25 million with a Greenshoe option, received strong participation from reputed international banks across different geographical locations including Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It was subsequently scaled up by 80 per cent, finally closing at $45 million, read a press release received on Saturday.

This loan facility will provide crucial support to City Bank’s foreign currency liquidity, the release added.  

“We are extremely happy to see the overwhelming response from global banks to City Bank’s syndication loan. Being oversubscribed by 80 per cent portrays City Bank’s strength and acceptance in global financial markets,” City Bank’s Additional Managing Director and Chief Business Officer Sheikh Mohammad Maroof said.

“In the current global scenario, we have taken multiple initiatives including this loan to ensure strong liquidity for the bank and cater to the increasing trade requirements of our clients. I would like to thank Bank Muscat for the longstanding relationship with City Bank and for helping us close this deal,” he added.

Bank Muscat is a leading syndicated loan arranger in Emerging Markets. This is the third successful syndicated loan facility arranged by Bank Muscat for City Bank, and the first one which is SOFR-linked.

City Bank availed the first syndicated loan of Є20 million from Bank Muscat in 2019, which was the first such loan by a Bangladeshi bank that was arranged by an Omani bank. In 2020, City Bank followed up its initial loan with a $30 million syndicated loan.

In addition to being the arranger, Bank Muscat also acted as the book runner for this transaction.