Airtel Raises $500m From JP Morgan, Standard Chartered, Others To Settle Debt

Airtel Africa is looking to cash out $500m from eight relationship banks to refinance its €750m Euro denominated bond which will be due next month.

The telecom firm said on Wednesday that it successfully signed a new $500m loan facility with a group of relationship banks.

The facilitating banks are, the Bank of America, BNP Paribas, Citibank, HSBC, J.P. Morgan, Standard Chartered Bank and two Indian relationship banks, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

“The new committed facility consists of a combination of a revolving credit facility and term loans with tenor of up to 4 years,” the Group said in a statement seen by THE WHISTLER.

It added, “The facility will be used to partially refinance the Group’s €750m Euro denominated bond (c.$880m) due 20 May 2021.”

The Group expects to settle the balance of the Euro denominated bond with its existing cash to reduce gross debt and associated interest costs.

In March, the Group signed a $108m deal to sell its tower and mobile money minority investments in Madagascar and Malawi to Helios Towers plc, a move aimed to reduce Group external debt.