Abu Dhabi’s NBAD raises $621 mln in Formosa bond market

Abu Dhabi-listed National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) has placed a 30-year Formosa bond for $621 million with institutional investors, the bank said in a bourse statement on Sunday.

The unsecured, zero-coupon, callable bond will be listed on Taiwan’s Taipei Exchange, and its settlement is expected by October 21 this year.

The issue was initially targeted at a benchmark $250 million- $300 million size but was upsized to $621 million, following “overwhelming support” from Taiwanese investors, the statement said.

Crédit Agricole and HSBC were the joint book runners, with Cathay United Bank Co as the co-manager. The Citi Group and NBAD acted as structuring agents.

The issuance was the first public transaction since the NBAD and First Gulf Bank (FGB) merger decision.

Formosa bonds are sold in Taiwan by foreign issuers and denominated in currencies other than the Taiwan dollar.

Last month, NBAD indefinitely postponed the region’s first issue of a “green bond” following investor concerns over pricing.