Nowhere will emerging market borrowers be harder pressed this year than in central and eastern Europe and central Asia. Almost every country in these regions has come under severe pressure over the past few months and there are few signs of the pain easing soon. In Kazakhstan, for example, the government announced last month that it was to lend $1 billion to the country’s four leading banks as well as investing an additional $3 billion in them through the purchase of preference shares or subordinated debt.
One of those banks is Halyk Bank, the country’s third-biggest lender. Although it still faces plenty of challenges, it is arguably the best-managed Kazakh bank, as it proved with its surprising $500 million, 5.5-year Eurobond in April. The deal was the first out of Kazakhstan since the sub-prime crisis began in August 2007.
