NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Becton Dickinson today entered into a $1.5 billion credit agreement with Citibank, according to forms filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
The agreement is a senior unsecured revolving credit facility that provides BD with $1.5 billion of financing, including a $100 million letter of credit subfacility, and expires in January 2021, according to the SEC documents. BD may access up to an additional $500 million of financing through the facility, for a maximum aggregate commitment of up to $2 billion.
The company said it plans to use the money for general corporate purposes.
The agreement stipulates that interest rates on borrowings will be based on prevailing rates and BD’s credit ratings, and that BD must maintain an interest expense coverage ratio of not less than 5-to-1 for the most recent four consecutive fiscal quarters.
The new agreement replaces a previous agreement for up to $1.5 billion which was initiated in 2012.
As with the prior agreement, Citibank acted as administrative agent while Citigroup Global Markets, the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, BNP Paribas, and JP Morgan Securities were the joint lead arrangers and joint book runners.
The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, BNP Paribas, and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. were syndication agents; Barclays Bank PLC, Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc, and Wells Fargo Bank National Association were documentation agents.