First Gulf Bank pays its $750m syndicated term loan in full

Initially launched in the market at $500m, the deal attracted subscriptions and commitments from 32 Regional and International banks and was oversubscribed amounting to $825m. In view of strong market demand, FGB had decided to increase the original funding of $500mn by 50% to $750m.

The Bank of Tokyo of Mitsubishi UFJ, Barclays Capital, Calyon, Commerzbank, Gulf International Bank and Standard Chartered Bank were the Original Mandated Lead Arrangers and had fully underwritten the transaction.

"This facility was part of FGB's commitment towards its growth and expansion and strategy of diversifying the sources of funds. It helped the bank in achieving its planned growth targets. The level of interest was significant and clearly reflected the trust that all participants have placed in FGB as one of the leading financial institutions in the region,"

said André Sayegh, CEO.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the participating banks for managing and executing the facility. Its success demonstrates the strong confidence in the FGB franchise," added Sayegh.

"Year after year, FGB proved to be one of the most dynamic, best performing, most efficient and most profitable institutions. Despite the challenging current economic conditions, we are right on our way to achieve our set targets." concluded Sayegh.

At the end of 2006, FGB's Net profit was Dhs1.5bn, and reached Dhs2.0bn by the end of 2007. Earlier this year, FGB had announced its full 2008 results with net profit of Dhs3,0bn, representing an impressive increase of 50% over its 2007 results. As at 31 December 2008, FGB is the UAE's second largest bank by total equity, the third by net profit and the fourth by total assets.

FGB's overall Average Return on Assets for the years 06, 07, and 08, was 3.6% and the Average Return on Equity was 20.6%.

FGB has a prominent profile in the marketplace due to its assigned ratings. FGB is rated "A+" by Fitch, "A2" by Moody's and "A+" by Capital Intelligence. This recognizes and reaffirms the bank's excellent financial performance and its well-established franchise.