BNP Paribas arranges $55m syndicated term loan facility for Depa Interiors

The facility was mandated to and arranged by BNP Paribas, one of the largest international banks, with a strong presence in the GCC.

Depa Interiors intends to use the loan facility for capital expenditure and acquisitions purposes in connection with the implementation of its strategic business plan.

The signing ceremony was held at Grand Hyatt Hotel in Dubai, and was attended by Mr. Mohannad Sweid, CEO of Depa United Group (DUG), Mr. Eyad Abdel Rahim, The Managing Director-Finance of the Depa United Group (DUG), Mr. Nadim Akhrass, The Managing Director Operations - Dubai Area as well as Representatives from BNP Paribas & the other Participating Banks, Arab African International Bank, Arab Bank, Barclays Bank, Mashreq Bank and Union National Bank.

'We are pleased with the support received from BNP Paribas Bank and I would like to thank them for their contribution in making this a highly successful syndication. The successful completion of this transaction is clearly an expression of the strong confidence in the management of Depa Group and its future growth plans.' said Mohannad Sweid, CEO of Depa United Group.

'We are delighted to have mandated BNP Paribas to raise the $55m syndicated term loan,' said Eyad Abdelrahim, Managing Director - Finance of Depa United Group, 'This syndicated loan, which was over subscribed at preferential Interest Rate, will strengthen our ability to increase our financial flexibility and allow us to continue to employ the strength of Depa's balance sheet to position us well for continued execution of our long term growth strategy.'

'With the continued large-scale developments in the hospitality, infrastructure and property development sectors, growth prospects for the specialist interior Contracting industry are solid. With Depa's extensive experience in the region and its solid management team, we are confident in the company's future performance,' said Michael Pereira, Country Head, UAE, BNP Paribas.

'The success of this debut Syndication for Depa Interiors reflects the excellent credentials of the Depa United Group and lends further credence to BNP Paribas' strong belief in the potential for sustained economic growth in the GCC.' said Mark Waters, Head Debt Capital Markets, Middle East, BNP Paribas.

BNP Paribas is one of Europe's largest banks in total assets and second largest by market capitalization. It employs 140,000 people, of whom 80,000 work in Europe, and maintains a presence in 87 countries. The bank is one of the most active banks in the syndication market in the region in addition to corporate banking & finance, investment and asset management activities.

Depa Interiors has recently received a Short-term credit rating of A3 and long-term credit rating of BBB- with a stable outlook from Capital Intelligence (CI), a leading credit rating agency for the world's emerging markets. The Investment Grade Rating reflects Depa Interiors good credit quality and satisfactory capacity for repayment of interest and principal in the short term.