Citigroup is to issue some $3.3 billion (400 billion yen) worth of yen-dominated bonds to repay some of the funding it borrowed to acquire Japanese brokerage Nikko Cordial, a Japanese financial newspaper has reported.
Should reports in the Nikkei business daily prove to be true, the offering will be the largest-ever yen-dominated issue, which had hitherto been Matsushita Electrical Industrial’s $2.4 billion (300 billion yen) issue in 2002.
Responding to the demands of investors, it is thought that the US investment bank will also issue bonds with maturities of between three and 40 years.
Earlier this month Citigroup announced that it had increased its stake in Nikko to a controlling share of 68 percent, effectively allowing it to bypass any potential opposition to its planned programme restructuring for the brokerage.
Citigroup initially moved to acquire its Japanese partner to restore credibility in its business after the brokerage had become embroiled in an accounting scandal that led to the resignation of six high-ranking executives.