MOSCOW: Russia’s largest lender Sberbank has issued a five-year loan worth 110 billion roubles ($1.9 billion) to VimpelCom Holdings B.V., a subsidiary of Amsterdam-based mobile network operator Veon Ltd, they said on Monday.
Veon, previously known as VimpelCom, said in a statement the loan would refinance the existing loans provided by Sberbank to its Russian business and would provide additional funds for general corporate purposes. “The agreement to enter into a new term loan is an important further step in continuing Veon’s strategy to centralise debt at the holding level, thus improving the capital structure of the Group,” Andrew Davies, Veon’s Chief Financial Officer, said in the statement.