For the first time in Armenia a strategic foreign investor acquired an Armenian mining company through joint financing of three Armenian banks. AIM-listed Chaarat Gold Holdings Limited acquired 100% of shares of “Kapan Mining and Processing Enterprise” CJSC for USD 55M from a company listed on the same stock exchange which is a subsidiary of Russian Polymetal Group.
The acquisition finance was arranged by Ameriabank with successful syndication with two other Armenian banks. The three banks extended a USD 40M loan of which USD 32M was issued by Ameriabank.
“This deal proved to the international financial community that Armenian banks are quite capable to close complicated deals successfully and to consolidate local financial resources for financing of international deals. It also shows that the Armenian economy is attractive for international capital and investments”, – said Gagik Sahakyan, Corporate and Investment Banking Director at Ameriabank.
Artem Volynets, Chief Executive Officer of Chaarat, said: “We are delighted to be the first major foreign investor in Armenia since the revolution. Environmental, social and corporate governance is core to our culture, strategy and execution. Those values sit well with Armenia’s newly found commitment to transparency – it’s a great country for a company like ours to do business.”
