Phoenix Group raises S$ 275 mn; to shift international HQ to Singapore

Singapore, 5 December 2017: Singapore-based SGD2.69 billion Phoenix Group, a global agricultural and food company engaged in the production, procurement, processing, merchandising, distribution ( wholesale and retail), through its integrated supply chain announced today the setting up of a SGD 275 million borrowing base facility to expand their rice business in India, Asia and Africa. Standard Chartered Bank – Singapore leads the seven-bank consortium that helped raise this borrowing base (BB) facility.

In another major announcement, the Phoenix Group said that it is in the process of re-domiciling from Dubai to Singapore under the recently approved government program. The company plans to leverage the developed ecosystem in Singapore to support its continued growth including access to the financial and capital markets.

With humble beginnings in Singapore, today the Phoenix Group operates 10 business verticals in 22 countries many of them integrating strategic assets along the supply chain volume of 11 million MTs generating revenues in the excess of SGD 2.69 billion. The company is management owned and employs over 2500 people with its operations in Singapore and Dubai.

Buoyed by the raising of SGD275 million BB facility, Phoenix Group is now set to become the world’s largest rice business and a major player in the global agri foods business that will allow the group to double its turnover in the next 3-5 years.

Commenting on the development, Mr. Gaurav Dhawan, Chairman of Phoenix Group said: “I am pleased to announce that the SGD 275 million borrowing base facility was principally over-subscribed. Arranged by Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore, this facility was supported by none other than OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) Vienna, BNP Paribas, RaboBank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, ICICI Bank and Shinhan Bank.This is a unique bespoke facility, centred around Rice business to Africa and allowing the flexibility for value capture across the entire chain from primary domestic procurement in Asia to downstream import and whole sale distribution in Africa. The facility is targeted today at Mozambique, Benin and Ivory Coast as destinations and India as origin but can be expanded very easily across geographies as well as other Agricultural Products and we will look to upsize the facility aligning with our growth.”

OFID’s Acting ADG Private Sector and Trade Finance Department, Mr. Tareq Al Nassar, believes that “the transaction represents an important step in the relationship between OFID, the Phoenix Group and one of OFID’s existing strategic partners, Standard Chartered Bank. The trade facility supports two of OFID’s key objectives: improving food security and strengthening South-South trade, with the main beneficiary countries being in Africa.”

Saket Sarda, Head of Trade, ASEAN and South Asia, Transaction Banking, Standard Chartered, said “Facilitating trade and driving commerce across our footprint in Asia and Africa is at the core of what we do as a leading international trade Bank. This transaction clearly demonstrates our capabilities and more importantly our relentless commitment to support our clients and their ecosystems of buyers and suppliers.”The post Phoenix Group raises S$ 275 mn; to shift international HQ to Singapore appeared first on Top Asia Business News, Trends, Insights & Analysis.