Bank TuranAlem JSC (Kazakhstan) became a guarantor of syndicated loan for the amount $777 m.

/IRBIS, Ranida Gabdeyeva, September 20, 05/ - Bank TuranAlem JSC (Almaty), whose shares and bonds are traded in the official "A" listing category of Kazakhstan stock exchange (KASE), today spread press release informing that the bank became a guarantor of syndicated loan for the amount $777 m. Agreement on this deal was signed on September 20, 2005. Loan was attracted by TuranAlem Finance B.V. (the bank's subsidiary company) for refinancing and trade financing and is granted for 1 year with margin 70 basis points per annum. The message says, "Bank TuranAlem JSC became a guarantor of the biggest syndicated loan among attracted by Kazakhstan borrowers for today". Organizers of the loan were Arab Bank plc, The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Ltd., HVB Group (Bank Austria Creditanstalt AG / Bayerische Hypo- und Vereinsbank AG), J.P. Morgan plc and SANPAOLO IMI S.p.A. Participants of syndicate, including organizers, are 73 foreign banks and financial institutes: 35 of them represents Western Europe, 13 - Near East, 9 - South-Eastern Asia, 8 - Great Britain, 6 - Northern America and 2 - Eastern Europe. Nearly 20 banks for the first time announced about themselves to Kazakhstan market of syndicated borrowings. Press release says, "vast geography of syndicate participants, who have different points of view about risk assessment, certifies about high international evaluation of Bank TuranAlem JSC and TuranAlem Finance B.V. solvency. This is also certified by the fact of increase in the course of syndication amount of credit from initially announced $300 m. to $900 m. (inter-subscription by 200%). The borrower decided to increase amount of loan to USD777 m." Bank TuranAlem JSC - backbone bank of Kazakhstan, leader on creation of banking net in CIS countries. The bank's assets reach $5.7 bn., total shareholders equity of the bank exceeds $600 m. TuranAlem Finance B.V. is established in 2001 in Netherlands to attract funds at international securities market. According to information Bank TuranAlem JSC is a general sponsor of CIS and Baltic countries conference "CIS: financial market and integration processes" and was leading sponsor of investment forum "Russia and CIS 2005: on a path leading to balanced economy", organized by British financial magazine Euromoney, held on September 13-14 in Moscow. [2005-09-20]