Tanzania’s largest lender CRDB Bank has secured a US$150mn syndicated term loan package from a pool of banks that will support its plans to drive funding into Africa’s commodities export sector.
The facility, now in its third year, was oversubscribed, with financial institutions altogether making commitments of US$247mn on a deal that had initially aimed to raise US$100mn from the market.
The funding is split between a US$45mn two-year tranche and a US$105mn one-year tranche, with backing from a group of 17 lenders from Africa, the Middle East, Europe and the UK.
Intesa Sanpaolo and Investec Bank serve as joint bookrunners and lead arrangers, while Mauritius Commercial Bank is the facility agent.
In a statement, CRDB and Investec say the deal will refinance last year’s US$150mn facility that was established to unlock the Tanzanian bank’s working capital and strengthen its lending to SMEs in Tanzania and Burundi.
This includes “project and infrastructure finance linked to the commodity sector”, the banks say.
Much of Tanzania’s exports are of agricultural products, yet its ports represent a vital trade route for goods such as cobalt and copper from exporters in resource-rich states including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
“Tanzania remains a critical cog in the pan-African economic growth engine, serving as a key export route for commodities produced in East, Southern and Central Africa,” says Marc Kohne, head of Africa leveraged finance at Investec.
In their statement, Investec and CRDB say “innovative funding” will be vital for growing exports of goods that are needed in the energy transition, especially to suppliers in Middle Eastern and Asian markets.
This year’s deal also attracted new financing partners alongside existing lenders whose “credit appetite increased”, the banks say.
Leanne Large, head of distribution and loan syndication at Investec, says the longer tenor of the funding highlights market confidence in CRDB and the stability and economic growth prospects in the region.
“CRDB Bank continues to impressively grow its business and balance sheet attracting a record number of investors into its 2024 syndicated loan,” Large says.
Established in 1996, CRDB is the largest bank in Tanzania, with an asset base of TSh12.5tn US$4.7bn across various businesses including corporate, retail, treasury and wholesale microfinance. The bank also serves clients in Burundi and the DRC.
