 "PNB Housing Finance raises Rs 522 cr via ECB from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking")
PNB Housing Finance on Tuesday said it has raised fresh equity of Rs 522 crore ($75 million) as external commercial borrowing (ECB) from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) of Singapore.
The ECB is under the Reserve Bank of India's automatic route of approval and the proceeds will be used by the company as per the applicable RBI guidelines, PNB Housing Finance said in a release.
"This is the second ECB borrowing of the company for 2019-20... SMBC until now has been according their continuous support through the domestic route only. The landed cost of the fully hedged facility has been much lower than the present domestic pricing for similar tenure," said Sanjaya Gupta, managing director, PNB Housing Finance.
He said the continuous raising of ECBs under the current market environment and that, too, from global financial institutions and banks only exhibits the strong fundamentals, core strength and inherent growth prospects of the company and the trust of the international lenders in the company.
"This facility will not only augment our liquidity but will further balance our long term ALM (asset and liability management) position," Gupta said.
He also said the company will utilise the RBI's recent directive that allows ECB up to $750 million annually under the automatic route.
"We reiterate considering the other ECB proposals which are in pipeline, that in the coming months, our company will further utilise the facility," he added.