Banque Saudi Fransi, (BSF) Saudi Arabia's fifth-largest bank by assets, has increased a syndicated loan to $525 million from $300 million after the deal closed oversubscribed, the arranging banks announced in a statement. The deal, signed on Monday, raised over $570 million in the market, bookrunners Calyon, Intesa Sanpaolo, RZB, SMBC and WestLB said. The deal, which is for general corporate purposes, is split between a $183 million, three-year tranche A paying a margin of 70 basis points (bps) over LIBOR and a $342 million, five-year tranche B that pays 100 bps. Participating banks were able to commit to either tranche or both tranches. Lenders were invited to commit at one of four levels and the top $35 million ticket paid an upfront fee of 60 bps on the A tranche and 125 bps on the B facility. Banque Saudi Fransi last tapped the loan market in June 2005, when it signed a $650 million, five-year term loan that paid a margin of 35 bps. Calyon holds an equity interest of 31.1 percent in the borrower. The bank is rated A by Fitch and Standard & Poor's, and Aa3 by Moody's.
