National Bank of Egypt in talks for dollar bond issue -sources

Thursday 19-03-2015 05:57 PM
National Bank of Egypt in talks for dollar bond issue -sources

People and vehicles are seen in front of the National Bank of Egypt (NBE), also known as the Al Ahli Bank, in the Fifth Settlement districts of New Cairo March 30, 2013. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

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DUBAI, March 19 (Reuters) - National Bank of Egypt (NBE), the oldest commercial lender in the North African country, has invited banks to pitch for arranger roles on a potential dollar-denominated bond issue, two banking sources said on Thursday.

A deal for the lender is expected to follow Egypt's return to the international debt market in the second quarter after a five-year hiatus, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the information isn't public.

NBE is looking for a deal of benchmark size, one of the sources said. For issuers with low credit ratings, such as NBE, benchmark is traditionally understood to mean upwards of $300 million.

NBE wasn't immediately available for comment. (Reporting by Archana Narayanan and David French; Editing by David Goodman)

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