UAC closes N18.7bn commercial paper issuance

The United Africa Company of Nigeria Plc (UAC) has announced the completion of its N18.7billion Series one and two Commercial Paper (CP) issuance in the Nigerian debt market under its recently established N45billion CP programme.

The CP Issuance comprised two tenors including a 90-day Series one issuance which priced at 8percent yield, and a 181-day Series two issuance, which priced at 8.25 per cent yield.

According to a statement issued by the UAC Group Finance Director, Mrs. Funke Ijaiya-Oladipo; this reflects the strong credit quality of the Company and investors’ positive sentiment towards UAC’s operations and strategy.

The CP issuance, which was 3.8x subscribed, was part of the intra-group treasury arrangement between UAC and its subsidiaries aimed at meeting short-term working capital requirements.

Ijaiya-Oladipo noted the CP Issuance was well received and attracted significant demand from a wide range of investors including pension fund administrators, asset managers, insurance companies and high net-worth individuals.

Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited acted as Lead Arranger and Dealer to the CP Issuance; First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Capital Markets Limited acted as Joint Dealer to the CP Issuance while Banwo and Ighodalo acted as Solicitors to the transaction.

Commenting on the significance and success of the CP Issuance, the Group Finance Director described the completion of the CP Issuance as a testament to the Company’s strength, the sustainability of its Group’s brands and the trust displayed by the investing community.

While she disclosed that the Commercial Papers will be quoted on the FMDQ Exchange, she said, “It is without doubt that the success of this issuance provides an avenue to optimize our funding cost while continuing to drive our strategic initiatives as an organisation.”