"Raiffeisen Zentralbank Oestereich" AG (RZB) announces the successful launch of its first bond of 2009, worth 1.5 billion Euros
The bonds are backed by the Austrian state and have a five-year maturity. The issue price was set according to the reference level for mid-swap corporate loans, plus 68 basis points, and the yearly coupon is 3,625%.
Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, HSBC Holdings and RZB itself have been named as joint bookrunners for the deal. The greatest demand for the bonds came from Germany, Austria and Great Britain. The bonds are rated "AAA" by S&P and "Aaa" by "Moody"s".
On November 25th, 2008, "Raiffeisen Zentralbank" received approval from its shareholders for a possible capital injection from the state. The agreement given by the shareholders (eight cooperative regional banks), will allow RZB to obtain a capital participation from the Austrian state, similar to the 2,7 billion Euros capital infusion obtained by rival "Erste Group".
RZB is the shareholder of bank group "Raiffeisen International", the second largest lending institution of Central and Eastern Europe, which owns several banks in Romania.