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Türkiye’s major lenders, Is Bank and QNB Türkiye, have signed new syndicated loan agreements with international financial institutions, raising a combined total exceeding $1.6 billion to support sustainability-linked objectives.
Syndicated loans are emerging as part of a wider shift among Turkish banks to broaden their international funding options while aligning with global environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards.
In recent months, lenders have been stepping up efforts to raise sustainability-linked financing—not only to respond to growing investor interest, but also to strengthen their international standing and gain access to more affordable capital.
According to filings submitted to Türkiye’s Public Disclosure Platform (KAP), Is Bank secured a dual-tranche syndicated loan totaling $800.5 million and €331.1 million, with a maturity of 371 days.
The funds are classified as sustainability loans, meaning they are tied to performance targets related to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria.
The pricing of the transaction was set at SOFR (Secured Overnight Financing Rate) plus 1.50% for the dollar tranche and Euribor plus 1.25% for the euro tranche, Is Bank said.
SOFR, or the Secured Overnight Financing Rate, is a U.S. benchmark interest rate based on overnight loans backed by Treasury securities, while Euribor, the Euro Interbank Offered Rate, reflects the average rate at which leading European banks lend to each other in euros.
Separately, QNB Türkiye has signed a more structured sustainability-linked syndicated loan agreement, consisting of four components.
The arrangement includes two parts with a 734-day maturity, valued at $181.2 million and €26.5 million, and two longer-term portions with a 1,101-day maturity, totaling $212.2 million and €22 million.
For the shorter-dated tranches, the cost of borrowing was set at SOFR plus 1.90% and Euribor plus 1.65%, while the longer-dated tranches were priced at SOFR plus 2.15% and Euribor plus 1.90%, reflecting a rising premium for extended duration lending in the current interest rate environment.
Türkiye Is Bank, the country’s oldest and one of its largest private lenders, and QNB Türkiye, the local subsidiary of Qatar’s QNB Group, both maintain broad retail and corporate banking operations that position them to engage in large-scale international financing.
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