13 Jan 2010 17:31

MinFin to select bank-organizers for Eurobond issue before Feb

MOSCOW. Jan 13 (Interfax) - The Russian Finance Minister will select the banks eligible to take part in organizing Russia's next Eurobond issue before the end of January, Deputy Finance Minister Dmitry Pankin told Interfax.

The government confirmed on December 21 an RFP (request for proposal) that has been sent to all banks eligible to become organizers for the issue, Pankin said.

A source from among the banks that received the RFP said that they are to present their view on the state of financial markets, on possible placement size, timing and yield, and also on Eurobond-issue marketing strategy and commission fees, to the Finance Ministry before January 15.

The list includes 22 investment banks. Four of them are Russian: VTB Capital, Sberbank of Russia , Troika Dialog , and Renaissance Capital.

Among the other banks are: ING, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Daiwa Securities, JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, Calyon, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, Nomura, HSBC, UBS, and UniCredit. Russia will be technically ready to place Eurobonds by March 2010, Pankin said earlier. But technical preparedness does not mean the placement will begin immediately, he said.

The most Russia could get on the foreign market this year is $17.8 billion, but "we most likely won't reach" that figure, he said.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said Russia would still borrow abroad next year even with oil at $70 per barrel. The federal budget assumes oil at $58 in 2010.