Best bank
Kazkommertsbank Best debt house
Citigroup
Best local partner Bank
TuranAlem
Kazkommertsbank (KKB) is the clear leader in Kazakh banking, ranking number one in operating income, net income and net interest revenue in 2003. Its net income in 2003, $64 million, was twice that of its nearest rival, Bank TuranAlem.
The bank has always been the first to do things in the country ? the first to issue a Eurobond, the first to issue an unsecured loan, and in the past 12 months it continued with two new firsts, becoming the first Kazakh bank to buy a Russian bank, and becoming the first CIS bank to issue subordinated debt.
It has acquired a strategic stake in Moskommertsbank, a bank that previously represented Kazakh interests in Moscow. The move represents a wider move by Kazakh banks into Russian banking, with other banks such as Nurbank also opening representative offices in Moscow recently. KKB has started to arrange large loans for Russian companies, such as $30 million of funding for mobile company Megafon, arranged in June 2004.
In April 2004, during a time of volatility for emerging-market debt, the bank showed its credit strength by issuing $500 million in debt in two tranches over three days. It first sold a $100 million subordinated debt issue, which was one of the first such issues from the CIS, and was four times oversubscribed.
Then, two days later, it issued a $400 million senior debt bond, which priced 20 basis points inside the bond of its rival, Bank TuranAlem.
Bank TuranAlem itself has had a successful year, and deservedly wins our best local partner award.
In 2003, its loan portfolio almost doubled, and it issued 22% of all bank loans in Kazakhstan. Its securities portfolio also increased dramatically, from KT51.7 billion in 2002 to KT87.9 billion ($643 million) in 2003.
The bank?s net income was hit by provisions for non-performing loans but by taking these provisions, it managed to reduce its NPL ratio to 0.7%. Like Kazkommertsbank, it has been innovative in its financing, issuing one of the largest syndicated loans for a CIS financial ? a $245 million deal ? as well as issuing about $600 million in Eurobonds in the past 12 months.
Citigroup wins the best Kazakh debt house award, having arranged five syndicated loans and two bond issues. It arranged large deals for both Kazkommertsbank and Bank TuranAlem, and enjoyed a 19% market share of the loan market. It was also lead manager, with Dutch bank ING, for Kazkommertsbank?s innovative senior and subordinated bond issue.
