Dubai's ETA Star, a holding company for businesses including real estate and shipping, has launched syndication of a $300 million, five-year loan.

BNP Paribas, HSBC and Emirates Bank International are the mandated lead arrangers for the loan, a banking source said on Monday.

In September, ETA Star told Reuters it was seeking a $300 million loan to fund expansion and may sell Islamic bonds next year. It said the loan would also be used to refinance existing debt.

The loan pays a margin of 100 basis points (bps) over LIBOR for the first three years, rising to 110 bps thereafter.

Four tickets are on offer in syndication, with lenders invited to commit $30 million as mandated lead arrangers for a participation fee of 75 bps, $25 million as lead arrangers for 65 bps, $15 million as arrangers for 55 bps, or $10 million as co-arrangers for 50 bps.

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services (S&P) assigned the ETA Group a BBB- long-term corporate credit rating in June.

ETA is a joint venture between Dubai's Al-Ghurair Investments and Indian businessmen BS Abdul Rahman and Syed Salahuddin. - Reuters