Attica Bank announced today the successful completion of the first of its €220 million synthetic securitisation of the SME and large corporate portfolio (Project Perseus).

In particular, Attica Bank (the Bank) has successfully completed the synthetic securitisation of a portfolio of large and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) performing loans of ~ €220 million. (the "Transaction") through the direct issuance of credit-linked notes ("CLNs") and the sale of the medium senior notes to a legal entity advised by Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP (or "DK"), marking the first synthetic securitization in the Greek capital market with the direct issuance of the notes by the credit institution itself.

The transaction has been structured in such a way that it achieves a significant risk transfer ("SRT") and meets the criteria for being a simple, Transparent and Standardised ("STS") transaction in order to achieve further mitigation of its risk-weighted assets ("RWA"). This reduction is expected to amount to ~€150m, thereby strengthening the bank's capital position by ~50 basis points (bps), subject to receipt of all necessary supervisory and regulatory approvals, the bank said in a statement. 

This first synthetic securitization of the bank has attracted significant investor interest, confirming the market's confidence in the bank's strategic plan. The transaction also provides the bank with an additional effective capital management tool while aligning with its business plan to provide new financing and further support the growth of the Greek economy.

On behalf of the Bank, KPMG acted as financial advisor, Clifford Chance and Koutalidis law firms acted as international and Greek law legal advisors, respectively, while Prime Collateralised Securities (PCS) acted as the STS Criteria Verification Agent, the announcement concludes.