Zain Saudi signs $600m loan
Riyadh, June 5, 2013
Zain Saudi, the kingdom's third-largest telecom operator, has signed a 2.25 billion riyals ($600 million) Islamic loan guaranteed by its parent company.
The three-year murabaha facility - a sharia-compliant cost-plus-profit arrangement - will be used to refinance an existing deal which had been extended beyond its original maturity date, Zain Saudi said in a bourse statement.
Kuwait-listed parent Zain, which owns a 37 percent stake in the firm, has given "an unconditional and irrevocable guarantee" for the facility.
Four banks provided the loan - Arab National Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi, Gulf International Bank and Samba Financial Group.
Zain Saudi has a separate 9 billion riyals loan due later this month. The operator has rolled over the debt multiple times since its original maturity date in 2011. - Reuters
