Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 18
By Aygun Badalova - Trend:
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has subscribed to $40 million of a $250 million euro bond issue by Yaşar Holding, a leading Turkish food and beverage producer, EBRD reported on November 18.
The bond, listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and rated B2 by Moody's and B by Fitch, will refinance an existing bond by Yaşar Holding, the report said.
The successful placement of Yaşar Holding's Eurobond will help the company to further diversify its funding base and will encourage other corporates in Turkey to pursue similar ways of financing, according to Michael Davey, EBRD Director for Turkey.
Yaşar Holding is one of Turkey's leading agribusiness groups, specialising in dairy products, processed meat and natural spring water as well as coatings, compound feed and fertilisers. The company has more than 1,000 food, beverage and other products and owns "Pinar", one of Turkey's most popular milk brands. The holding comprises 20 companies, four of which rank among Turkey's largest 500 firms. It operates over 20 factories, more than 1,500 distributors, and 200,000 sales points.
Turkey is one of the EBRD's priorities. The Bank started investing in Turkey in 2009 and currently operates from offices in Istanbul, Ankara and Gaziantep. To date, the EBRD has invested over €4 billion in the country across 126 projects in infrastructure, energy, agribusiness, industry and finance. In just five years the EBRD's portfolio in Turkey has become one of the largest among the countries where the bank works.