Venezuela-owned Citgo rallies non-banks to raise US$1.2bn in loans

Venezuela-owned oil refiner Citgo mandated broker dealer and non-bank lender Jefferies to arrange a US$1.2bn term loan, after its previous traditional bank lenders declined to participate due to regulatory pressure to comply with political restrictions on doing business with its South American parent, sources familiar with the transaction said. Houston-headquartered Citgo also appointed another non-bank lender, Houlihan Lokey, to coordinate the term loan for the fuel company, which is owned by state-owned Petróleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) and currently hamstrung by US-imposed economic sanctions. More…