Slovenia's NLB issues 120 mln euro of subordinated notes

“Notes with the interest rate of 3.65% per annum and BB rating (Standard & Poor's) were admitted to trading on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange, Euro MTF market, as of the date of issue,” Nova Ljubljanska Banka (NLB) said in a filing with the Ljubljana Stock Exchange (LJSE) late on Tuesday.

The final maturity of the notes is November 19, 2029, callable on November 19, 2024,” NLB said, adding that the demand from qualified investors was significantly higher than the supply – with the order book exceeding Euro 290 million.

The transaction, which was co-organised by UBS Europe SE and NLB, is the bank’s first international capital transaction after having successfully completed the privatisation process and is one of the rare capital market transactions carried out by the banking issuers from the region.

The investor base is diversified and includes international as well as regional investors, mostly based in Germany, United Kingdom, Austria, Croatia and Slovenia. Interest came mostly from international financial institutions, pension funds and top international fund managers. “The issuance of notes will allow NLB to strengthen and optimize its capital structure as envisaged since the IPO,” Kremser added.

NLB shares last traded on Tuesday at 56.6 euro, up 0.71%.

In November 2018, the Slovenian government sold 59.1% of NLB's issued share capital in an IPO on the LJSE, while in June 2019, Slovenia’s sovereign holding company successfully concluded NLB's privatisation by completing the placement to institutional investors. The sale left the government with 25% plus one share in NLB.

($ = 0.9028 euro)