Tencent Holdings Ltd. has started marketing a $3.5 billion loan to lenders to back its purchase of a majority stake in Supercell Oy from SoftBank Group Corp., people familiar with the matter said. Asia’s biggest internet company is offering the facility, which has an average life of 4.3 years, at an interest rate of 212 basis points more than the London interbank offered rate, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because they aren’t authorized to speak publicly. The five-year non-recourse financing is split into a $3 billion term loan and a $500 million revolving credit, they said.
Tencent is leading a $8.6 billion deal for control of Supercell, the Finnish maker of mobile games including Hay Day, Clash Royale and Boom Beach. China’s Internet giants have been tapping demand for “new economy” investments and raising more funds in debt markets, with the nation’s biggest e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. getting a $4 billion loan earlier this year. Calls to Canny Lo, a spokeswoman for Tencent, went unanswered. There was no immediate reply to e-mailed questions. The mandated lead arrangers and underwriters for the loan are Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., Bank of America Corp., Bank of China Ltd., China Merchants Bank Co., Deutsche Bank AG, HSBC Holdings Plc and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co., according to the people.
First seen and source: Dealstreetasia.com
