Turk Telekom Exceeded Country Ceiling and Upgraded to Investment Grade by Standard & Poor's

ISTANBUL, July 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

International rating agency Standard and Poor's upgraded Turk Telekom to BBB- (investment grade). With this upgrade, Türk Telekom joined a handful of Turkish corporates exceeding the country ceiling, a very rare achievement. "We believe that the company's adequate liquidity position could allow the company to sustain a sovereign default. This allows us to rate the company higher than we rate the sovereign," S&P stated in its press release.  

S&P emphasized Turk Telekom's improved liquidity position following the issuance of its highly successful debut USD 1 billion bond transaction in June 2014. The rating agency said "We believe that the reduction in short term debt together with the company's commitment to improving liquidity further supports an investment grade rating (BBB- or higher)."

     (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140724/698011 )

Turk Telekom's USD 1 billion debut bond, the first dual tranche and largest ever corporate issuance out of Turkey, which was 8 times oversubscribed by high grade investors from a broad geography, was also upgraded to BBB- investment grade rating.

Turk Telekom's solid business, together with its prudent financial policies led to the successful upgrade. The company recently announced that its net income increased 186% year on year as part of its Q2 earnings results, and continues to maintain a low leverage position.

Turk Telekom CEO Rami Aslan said, "We are very pleased that our corporate rating is upgraded to a well-deserved investment grade level. With this upgrade our company now has two investment grade ratings, one from S&P and one from Fitch. This achievement will not only benefit our company by attracting more high grade investors, but also help our country by contributing to the level of trust foreign investors have in Turkey and Turkish corporations."

For further information and communication:
Gurkan Kagan Ozturk                    
Tel: +90(0)533-135-08-46                    
gurkan.ozturk@desibelajans.com               

Aslı Eskibatman
Tel: +90(0)530-957-47-43
asli.eskibatman@desibelajans.com

SOURCE Turk Telekom