News Article

13 November 2005

ADCB and Standard Chartered launch Inaugural Singapore Dollar bond

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank ("ADCB") has completed a S$80 million Floating Rate Note (the "Notes") issue. Standard Chartered Bank ("Standard Chartered") is the sole lead manager of this issue.

The S$80 million issue will be senior obligations of ADCB. The Notes are issued off ADCB's US$2,500,000,000 Euro Medium Term Note Programme (the "Programme") established in June 2005. The Programme is rated Aa3/A- by Moody's and Standard & Poor's respectively. This is the highest rating given to any instrument from a bank in the Middle East.

This transaction is an important milestone in the development of the Singapore bond market as it is the first S$ bond offering by a Middle Eastern issuer.

ADCB, formed in 1985, is one of the largest commercial bank in the UAE, with assets totalling AED 59.0 billion (US$16.1 billion) as of September 2005. It currently enjoys market share of about 9.2% and 11.4% of total customer deposits and loans, respectively. It is 65% owned by the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority ("ADIA") which is owned by the government of Abu Dhabi. ADCB is currently listed on the Abu Dhabi stock exchange.

Ray Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer UAE of Standard Chartered, said:

"Standard Chartered is honoured to be able to bring ADCB as the first Middle Eastern issuer to the S$ bond market. We are confident that investors will see it as an excellent opportunity to further diversify their portfolio into a premium Middle Eastern credit. The timing is ideal due to the growing awareness of the UAE amongst the Singaporean investors. The transaction will pave the way for more such issues from the Middle East."

Mr. Eirvin Knox, CEO of ADCB, said:

"The S$ Notes issue represents a diversification from ADCB's traditional funding sources into a new market. We appreciate Standard Chartered's efforts to open up a new funding market for us, and at the same time increase our profile in the region."