Dubai, UAE – The UAE’s $1.5 billion bond issue saw five times oversubscription, attracting over $7.4 billion in bids, the Ministry of Finance announced on Monday.
The 10-year bond, with a yield of 4.917%, will list on the London Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Dubai, maturing in September 2033.
The allocation was geographically diverse, with 61% going to banks, 32% to fund managers, 4% to pension funds and central banks, and 3% to the insurance sector.
Ratings by Fitch and Moody’s are AA- and Aa2, respectively, matching the UAE’s federal government credit rating.
The bonds met with a strong demand, leading to a 25 basis points price reduction from the initial guidance.
“The successful completion of another sovereign bond by UAE, is a testament that UAE remains an attractive destination for investors and one of the World’s most attractive investment hubs,” the Minister of State for Financial Affairs Mohamed bin Hadi Al Hussaini said
He added: “The UAE has yet again achieved strong results in its recent bond offering attracting strong and diversified investors demand. The strong order book resulted in price compression of 25bps from the initial pricing guidance, with final pricing at US Treasuries plus 60 bps.”
The issue was offered through a syndicate of joint lead managers and bookrunners comprising of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC, BNP Paribas, Citigroup Global Markets Limited, Emirates NBD Capital, First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC, HSBC Bank plc, Goldman Sachs, Mashreq Bank PSC and Mizuho.
