HSBC raises $1.3bn for Al Wa’ab City in Qatari capital

International bank HSBC has raised 4.6 billion Qatari riyals ($1.3 billion) for Qatar’s Al Wa’ab City – a mixed-use development in Qatar – using a variety of sources including debt, mezzanine and equity funding sources. HSBC was appointed as Financial Advisor by the $3.2bn (Dh11.7bn) Al Wa’ab City. Kapil Chadda, Head of Investment Banking in Qatar for HSBC, said: “This financing stands out due to the raising of such a large amount of capital, for a green-field real estate project in Qatar. The innovation stems from a unique combination of financing sources which are both conventional and Islamic and with a range of international, regional and local banks and investors”. The company has raised QAR3.6bn in senior debt on a fully underwritten basis which represents almost a third of the total value of the project. “This is a remarkable feat in the challenging times and is a testament to the quality of the sponsors [Nasser Bin Khalid Group], the credit profile of Qatar in the GCC and the project itself,” added Chadda. The remaining two thirds of the financing is coming from a mixture of equity and mezzanine finance. HSBC assisted the company in charting the way to raise financing, arranging a bridge loan and structuring, underwriting, book running and holding the senior loan. Sheikha Hanadi Al Thani, CEO of Al Wa’ab City, said: “We very much appreciate the extraordinary efforts of HSBC as our financial advisor to organise this transaction in such difficult times. The financing of this project is ground-breaking for the Middle East. “It is the first time that senior debt and mezzanine finance, let alone one that is Shariah compliant, have been combined for a regional borrower with equity investors, and the first time that this group of local, regional and global banks, sponsors and investors have come together in this way, all on the same day.” business24-7.ae