Banking & Finance Omantel to buy back over $350m of its bonds By Reuters & Staff Writer October 21, 2022 Creative Commons The central bank has undertaken an ‘liraisation’ policy of stabilising the currency pressured by its interest rate cuts Oman Telecommunications, majority owned by the state, said in a bourse filing it has accepted to buy more than $350 million of its existing bonds for cash. Omantel earlier this month made a tender offer to holders of its $600 million bonds due in 2023 and $900 million bonds maturing in 2028. It will buy back just over $140.5 million of the 2023 notes and just over $211 million of the 2028 paper, it said in a Euronext filing on Wednesday. The settlement date for the notes accepted for purchase is Oct. 24. The tender offer will expire on Nov. 1, unless extended by the company. The following day, Omantel will announce the final acceptance amount. The final settlement date in expected to be Nov. 3. Citi, HSBC and Standard Chartered are dealer managers on the tender offer. Earlier this month, Omantel, a subsidiary of Oman Investment Authority (OIA) xwill set up one of the largest regional telecom tower companies through the sale of telecom towers, Oman Daily Observer reported, citing CEO Talal Al Maamari. The spinoff will help invest an estimated $1.6 billion into Omantel’s long-term growth projects, he added.
