MTC US$ 750 Million Murabaha facility succesfully syndicated

A total of 20 financial institutions from the MENA region, Asia and Europe participated in what is one of the largest Islamic financings for 2005. Proceeds of the Facility were used to partially prepay a US$ 2.4 billion bridge facility entered into in May 2005 by MTC to fund part of the US$ 3.36 billion acquisition of Celtel International B.V., a Dutch mobile telecommunications company with major interests in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The facility was fully underwritten and pre-funded on 21 December 2005 by Mandated Lead Arrangers ABC Islamic Bank, Calyon, Gulf International Bank, Kuwait Finance House, Arab Bank, and National Bank of Abu Dhabi. Gulf International Bank is the Modareb and Facility Agent.

NBK Capital, the investment banking arm of the National Bank of Kuwait S.A.K., acted as financial advisor to MTC in connection with this landmark facility.

MTC, which has been very active in bidding for and acquiring mobile businesses over the past three years, has historically relied on conventional facilities for debt funding requirements. In line with the company's overall strategy to diversify sources of funding, MTC decided to tap the Islamic market for the first time through this one-year Islamic Murabaha Facility.