OREANDA-NEWS. On 24 July 2008 OAO ARMADA (MICEX, RTS: ARMD) announced that it has attracted a USD 16m loan, the first tranche of a USD 102m credit line provided by Halyk Bank and NBK-Bank.

ARMADA was granted the 3-year loan at a 15% annual interest rate. The borrower may repay the facility ahead of schedule without any penalties. The company intends to use this financing for acquisitions in rapidly growing segments of the IT market with strong margins.

Commenting on the deal, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ARMADA, Dmitry Belik, said, “Despite a difficult situation on the debt market, ARMADA has managed to raise money for further implementation of its strategy. We hope to continue the successful cooperation with NBK-Bank and Halyk Bank, and plan to utilize the USD 102m credit line until the end of the year, spending it on acquisitions. ARMADA is currently at the final stage of negotiations with a number of companies, and expects to announce new deals by the end of the year.”

ARMADA has accumulated considerable experience in the M&A field and subsequent integration of new assets into the group. The company held an IPO in July 2007, and used the proceeds to finance several acquisition transactions. As a result, in 2007, ARMADA bought controlling stakes in Soyuzinform – one of the major Russian IT outsourcers, PM Expert – the leading project management consultant, and ETC – the leading developer of e-procurement solutions. All these companies finished the year with strong results, which exceeded the management’s expectations made at the moment of acquisitions.