Mumbai: PNB Housing Finance Ltd, a housing finance company sponsored by state-owned lender Punjab National Bank and backed by private equity investor Carlyle Group, Thursday said its board has approved raising up to $1 billion by selling masala bonds.
Masala bonds are rupee-denominated bonds sold in offshore capital markets. “The board has approved issuance of rupee denominated bonds (masala bonds) to overseas investors up to an amount of $1 billion in one or multiple tranches,” the filing said.
PNB Housing Finance board also approved the issuance of secured and unsecured non-convertible debentures aggregating up to an amount of Rs6,000 crore in tranches.
World Bank arm International Finance Corp. (IFC) was the first to issue masala bonds in November 2014. It raised Rs1,000 crore to fund Indian infrastructure projects.
In March, Housing Development Finance Corp. Ltd (HDFC) raised about $504 million (about Rs3,300 crore) through masala bonds, to fund its business expansion, the company had said in stock exchange filings.
Earlier this month, Fullerton India Credit Co. Ltd, a non-banking financial company (NBFC) owned by Singapore-based Temasek Holdings Pte. Ltd, on Thursday said it had raised Rs500 crore ($76 million) from IFC. PNB Housing Finance shares rose 1.75% to Rs1,418.35 on BSE, while the benchmark Sensex rose 0.32% to 33,147.13 points.