Metinvest Said to Raise $550 Million for Pre-Export Finance Loan

Metinvest BV, Ukraine’s largest steelmaker, has raised more than $550 million from banks for a pre-export finance loan, according to two people with knowledge of the deal.

The three-year financing is expected to sign next week, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the terms aren’t public. Five banks joined the planned $300 million deal in syndication which may increase in size, they said.

Deutsche Bank AG, Natixis, ING Groep NV and Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI) arranged the deal for the company, according to a December statement. Metinvest BV is the parent of the Donetsk, Ukraine-based steelmaker controlled by billionaire Rinat Akhmetov.

The loan will pay an interest margin of 525 basis points more than the London interbank offered rate and has a grace period of one year, according to the statement. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.

Officials at Metinvest’s Donetsk-based press department didn’t reply to an e-mail and telephone call seeking comment on the financing.

To contact the reporter on this story: Stephen Morris in London at smorris39@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Faris Khan at fkhan33@bloomberg.net