ICICI Bank’s global bond issue raises Rs500 crore

ICICI Bank, the country's largest private sector lender, today announced that it has raised $500 million through an issue of bonds in the international market.

The bank has priced the five-and-a-half year bonds at 275 basis points over five-year US treasuries, ICICI Bank said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

ICICI Bank sold the bonds through its Hong Kong branch. It had appointed Bank of America Merrill Lynch, HSBC and Deutsche Bank to raise the money.

Earlier this week, rating agency Moody's had assigned a Baa2 rating to the dollar-denominated bonds, issued by the bank through its Hong Kong branch.

"The rating reflects the bank's comfortable liquidity position, strong capitalisation levels, as well as its satisfactory recurring profitability driven by robust fee income," Moody's had said.

According to Moody's, the notes will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 and may not be offered or sold within the US (as defined in Regulation S under the Securities Act) except to qualified institutional buyers under Rule 144A and to non-US persons outside the US under Regulation S of the Act. The exact amount and maturity of the issuance is yet to be decided while ICICI Bank can exercise an optional redemption of the notes any time.