LONDON & ALMATY, October 14, 2014: The Republic of Kazakhstan has today closed a $2.5 billion Eurobond offering.
The offering was made under Rule 144A and Regulation S, and the bonds are listed on the London Stock Exchange. The bonds were issued in two tranches, a $1.5 billion tranche of 3.875% Notes due 2024 and a $1 billion tranche of 4.875% Notes due 2044.
The transaction is the first sovereign bond offering by Kazakhstan since 2000. It is also the first ever offering of sovereign bonds containing the International Capital Markets Association’s new collective action clauses and pari passu clause, introduced in response to the Argentina sovereign bond crisis, making it a milestone in the reform of the sovereign bond markets.
Morgan Lewis served as U.S., English and Kazakhstan legal adviser to Kazakhstan on the offering. The Morgan Lewis team was led by London-based Business and Finance partner Carter Brod, who was joined by a London-Almaty team that included Business and Finance partner Aset Shyngyssov and Business and Finance associates Konstantin Lukhnov and Edwin de la Rosa.
Carter Brod commented, “We are delighted to have had the opportunity to assist Kazakhstan with this important and successful capital-raising transaction, which establishes a benchmark for Kazakhstan corporate bond issues going forward.”