Ashmore Flexes Up Price On $1.5 Billion Loan

Ashmore Energy had to flex up pricing on a $1 billion seven-year term loan B, following market resistance. It was originally floated at Libor plus 275 basis points, but raised to 300 basis points after pushback from participants. Price flex is rare in the LatAm bank market and has typically involved downward revisions owing to excess liquidity. The move higher by Ashmore suggests that the days of “anything goes” may soon be over for Latin borrowers. The $1.5 billion loan is being taken out to pay for the acquisition of Prisma and should close early next week. The financing also includes a $500 million revolver. Credit Suisse and JPMorgan are leading, with Citi, Lehman, Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs also participating.