Akbank T.A.Ş signs US$600 Million equiv. Dual Currency Sustainable Term Loan Facilities on 16 April 2024
Dubai, UAE, 16 April 2024: Akbank T.A.Ş (“Akbank” or the “Bank”), the leading private sector bank in Turkey, is pleased to announce the successful signing of its 367-day US$309,750,000 and €267,000,000 Sustainable Term Loan Facilities on 16 April 2024 (“Facilities”). Proceeds of the Facilities will be utilized towards financing or refinancing of sustainable eligible activities, assets and projects, including but not limited to sustainable trade finance, as defined in Akbank’s Sustainable Finance Framework.
Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC, Emirates NBD Capital Limited, First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC and Standard Chartered Bank acted as Joint Co-ordinators, Senior Mandated Lead Arrangers & Bookrunners on the transaction.
Standard Chartered Bank also acted as the Sustainability coordinator for the transaction.
Emirates NBD Capital Limited also acted as Documentation Agent, and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC acted as Facility Agent.
Following strong global demand from 45 institutes from America, Europe, Asia, Middle East and Africa, the Facilities were oversubscribed to over 160x from the original launch amount. Akbank choose to scale back and signed the Facilities at US$ 600 Million equiv., with this transaction, the success of the deal underscores the strength of Akbank’s banking relationships and credit strength as well as the market’s acknowledgment of Akbank’s sustainability efforts.
Akbank also achieved to squeeze the all-in price by 100 bps p.a. from its October 2023 transaction, demonstrating strong liquidity support and trust in Akbank and Turkish Banking industry.
Akbank has strategically identified four core Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) domains that are crucial both for its stakeholders and the business, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals and the transition towards a low-carbon economy. Leveraging its robust financial performance and an effective governance framework, these focal areas include Sustainable Finance, Ecosystem Management, Climate Change, and People & Community.
In 2021, Akbank established ambitious long-term objectives, committing to provide TL 200 billion in sustainable loan financing and aiming for its sustainable investment funds to reach TL 15 billion by 2030. Remarkably, by 2023, Akbank not only achieved but surpassed its 2030 sustainable finance goal, subsequently setting a new target of TL 800 billion. Moreover, the bank distinguished itself as one of the 28 global banks to become a founding signatory of the UN Financial Health and Inclusion Commitment in 2023. Under this commitment, Akbank has set forth a measurable financial inclusion goal to increase the number of women-led business customers by 10% annually until 2025.
Aiming to attain net-zero status across its operations and portfolio by 2050, 2023 marked a significant year for Akbank. It was pivotal in mapping out the decarbonization roadmap for both its portfolio and operational emissions. The bank has meticulously calculated its financed emissions across various business segments utilizing the PCAF methodology and has established interim emission reduction targets for sectors with high carbon intensity. Akbank accordingly announced its commitment to the industry-led and UN-convened Net-Zero Banking Alliance, the flagship climate initiative under UNEP FI’s Principles for Responsible Banking.
To ensure the governance and oversight of its sustainability endeavors at the highest level, Akbank has instituted a Sustainability Committee within its board structure. This committee is tasked with directing and monitoring the sustainability efforts across all business units, ensuring alignment with the bank’s overarching sustainability objectives.
Banks:
Sustainability Coordinator:
Standard Chartered Bank
Coordinators, Senior Mandated Lead Arrangers & Bookrunners:
Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC, Emirates NBD Capital Limited, First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC and Standard Chartered Bank
Senior Mandated Lead Arrangers & Bookrunners:
HSBC Bank Middle East Limited, ING Bank N.V., MUFG Bank, Ltd., MUFG BANK TURKEY A.Ş., Societe Generale, Standard Chartered Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, London Branch
Mandated Lead Arrangers & Bookrunners:
Citibank N.A., Abu Dhabi Global Markets Branch, Citibank N.A., London Branch, Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited, Dubai (DIFC) Branch and J.P. Morgan Securities plc
Lead Arranger:
Banca UBAE S.p.A., Bank of America Europe DAC, BNP Paribas, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft and mBank S.A.
Arrangers:
ABC International Bank plc, Absa Bank Limited, Arab Bank plc, The Bank of New York Mellon, Barclays Bank PLC, British Arab Commercial Bank plc, Bper Bank Luxembourg SA, Caixa Bank, S.A., Commercial Bank of Dubai PSC, DOHA BANK Q.P.S.C., DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral-Genossenschaftsbank, Frankfurt am Main, Erste Group Bank AG, Goldman Sachs International, Gulf International Bank B.S.C., Habib Bank Limited, Bahrain (Retail Branch), HBL Bank UK Ltd, The Housing Bank of Trade and Finance, Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A., London Branch, Jordan Kuwait Bank, Mashreqbank PSC, National Bank of Fujairah PJSC (NBF), National Bank of Oman SAOG, Pasha Yatirim Bankasi A.Ş., Rabitabank OJSC, Union De Banques Arabes ET Françaises – UBAF, United Arab Bank PJSC and Zürcher Kantonalbank