Qatar National Bank raises $1bn from 5-year eurobonds

Qatar News Agency

Qatar National Bank, the Gulf region’s biggest bank by assets, has raised $1 billion through its eurobond medium-term note programme.

The bond was issued on January 23 2024 and matures on January 30 2029, with a coupon rate of 4.875 percent a year, the state-owned Qatar News Agency reported, quoting a statement by the bank.

The bond issue attracted strong interest from global investors and was heavily oversubscribed, reflecting confidence in QNB Group’s financial strength.

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The issue was arranged and offered through a syndicate of joint lead managers, including Barclays, Cacib, HSBC, J.P. Morgan, QNB Capital, SMBC Nikko, and Standard Chartered Bank.

Ali Al-Kuwari, Qatar’s finance minister, told Bloomberg Television last week that the country will sell its first green bond soon, and the first external debt issuance in four years.

Qatar, the world’s biggest producer of liquefied natural gas, has refrained from issuing eurobonds since early 2020, when it placed $10 billion in five, 10, and 30-year debt instruments.

Fitch Ratings predicted in a recent report that the global value of the sukuk market would pass $1 trillion in the medium term, having reached $850 billion at the end of 2023 despite “geopolitical triggers”.