Leading global food and agri-business, Olam International Limited (“Olam’’) and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Olam Treasury Pte Ltd (“OTPL”), have secured a three-year digital-linked revolving credit facility (the “Facility”) aggregating US$350.0 million.
This is the world’s first “Digital Loan” – one where the pricing of the Facility is linked to Olam’s digital maturity score, thereby supporting Olam in its ongoing efforts towards digital transformation.
The digital maturity score is determined by the Boston Consulting Group using their proprietary “Digital Acceleration Index” methodology which assesses Olam across 4 digital building blocks: (a) business strategy driven by digital, (b) digitising the core, (c) new digital growth and (d) enablers. Olam and the participating banks have agreed on annual improvement targets over the course of the Facility which, if achieved, would trigger a reduction in the interest rate. Proceeds from the Facility will be applied towards refinancing of existing loans of Olam and its subsidiaries.
Olam’s Executive Director and Group Chief Operating Officer, A Shekhar, said: “We are delighted to be a part of this pioneering effort along with our banking partners, to launch this first-of-a-kind facility that links the interest rate on the loan to achieving measurable annual digital improvement targets. This financing can be a good template to drive the agriculture sector’s digital transformation and is another example of Olam’s commitment towards our purpose of Re-imagining Global Agriculture and Food Systems.”
Olam has appointed 7 banks as Mandated Lead Arrangers who will be participating in the Facility in equal parts, namely: Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (“BBVA”), Singapore Branch, DBS Bank Ltd., First Abu Dhabi Bank P.J.S.C. Singapore Branch, JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., Mizuho Bank Ltd., Natixis Singapore Branch & Standard Chartered Bank. BBVA is the Digital Co-Ordinator and Facility Agent.
Ricardo Laiseca, BBVA’s Head of Global Finance, said: “We believe that companies that undertake a digital transformation will be the winners in their sector in the long term; Digitisation translates into greater competitiveness and profitability, which will allow these companies to stay ahead of the competition.”
