Kommersant: Ukrtelecom pressed to repay $222.2m in debt

International banks Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) and Deutsche Bank (DB) have asked Ukrtelecom to repay outstanding $222.2m of a $500m syndicated loan extended in 2005. The banks’ decision was caused by the upcoming change of the borrower’s ownership. Ukrtelecom has to issue short-term bonds to refinance this loan, which will lead to additional costs at about $10m-$14m, according to analysts’ estimates. The company registered Series L bonds worth UAH250m for this purpose, the information about the claim of Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) and Deutsche Bank (DB) was taken from the issue prospectus. Initially the lenders demanded repayment on January 17, but then they agreed to a delay, so now the first tranche amounting to $56m has to be repaid on February 25 and the remaining part is due May 25. The $500m syndicated loan has a 7-year tenor and amortizes by $56m every 6 months.

• Full name
  Ukrtelecom OJSC
• Registration country
  Ukraine
• Industry
  Communication