Georgia Capital PLC (the “Company” or “GCAP”) announces that JSC Georgia Capital (“JSC GCAP”), the Georgian holding company of GCAP’s businesses, has today launched a USD 150 million sustainability-linked bond offering (the “Notes”) on the Georgian market.
The Notes are US$-denominated with 5-year bullet maturity (callable after two years) and are rated BB- by S&P, a one notch upgrade compared to the existing Eurobond. At the same time, JSC GCAP has today launched an invitation to purchase all of its outstanding USD 300 million Eurobonds for cash (excluding the $84 million existing Eurobonds that have already been re-purchased and are held in treasury), subject to successful completion of the planned local market Notes issuance.
The Eurobond repurchases will be funded by the proceeds generated from the issuance of the local sustainability-linked bonds together with the existing liquid funds of GCAP, which have benefited from a significant increase in dividend inflows in 2023.
The book-building process for the Notes is expected to last until the close of business on 1 August 2023, while the preliminary range for the coupon to be paid has been set at 8.0% to 8.5%. The Notes are expected to be accepted on Clearstream shortly after their issuance. The Notes have already received substantial interest from international financial institutions (“IFIs”), who may acquire up to $100 million of the Notes at completion.
As a result, GCAP’s gross debt balance is expected to decrease from the current US$ 300 million to US$ 150 million. This reduction has been supported by the substantial growth in cash dividend income from the portfolio companies.
Galt and Taggart JSC and TBC Capital LLC will act as placement agents for the issuance of the Notes.
