Sidley has advised Bank of Cyprus Public Company Limited in connection with the issuance of its €300,000,000 Fixed to Floating Rate Senior Preferred Green Notes due May 2029.
The new issue represents the first green bond issuance by a Cypriot bank. The transaction attracted considerable interest from investors, with the deal seeing Bank of Cyprus amass its largest senior order book in ten years. The Notes will be MREL eligible and provide the Bank of Cyprus group with a healthy buffer above its minimum risk-weighted assets and leverage ratio exposure requirements, which the group is required to meet by 31 December 2024.
David Howe, head of Sidley’s English law Capital Markets team, commented: “We are delighted to assist our long-standing client Bank of Cyprus on yet another noteworthy and successful capital raising. Despite unpredictable markets and competing regional supply, Bank of Cyprus was able to price the issue at fair value, providing it with premium-free MREL funding. The green element to the transaction also helped to bolster the order book, and the use of proceeds of this deal towards funding eligible green projects will help Bank of Cyprus to implement its “Beyond Banking” approach, which is designed to help Cyprus transition to a more sustainable future. The strength and quality of the order book was testament to Bank of Cyprus’s successful transformation into a well-capitalised, diversified and profitable financial services group. We are very pleased to have supported Bank of Cyprus throughout this journey over the past few years.”
The Sidley team was led by partner David Howe (Capital Markets), who was assisted by counsel Omar Shafi (Capital Markets), and trainee solicitor Abdullah Shah, all based in Sidley’s London office.
