Sri Lankan government approves lead managers for US$ 500 million Samurai bond
Cabinet of Ministers in Sri Lanka has reportedly approved the lead managers for the US$ 500 million Samurai bond, which the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) is planning to issue in late October or November.
Accordingly, Mizuho Securities Company Ltd., SMBC Nikko Securities Inc., and Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. Ltd. have been picked as the lead managers for the bond, which is the first the CBSL will issue to the Japanese market.
CBSL had earlier outlined plans to issue the bond to top up reserves and ride out any uncertainties created by the Presidential Election in mid-November, even though Sri Lanka’s next large debt repayment is only due in October 2020, the local media has reported.
In August, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka had stated that it had consultations with Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), which had said it was willing to give a 95% guarantee and a flexible fee for the bond issuance.
According to the local media, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka is also allowed to raise up to US$ 2 billion more under the Liability Management Act for debt repayments next year.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka’s economic conditions have been on a positive path with multilateral donor agencies hailing the reforms introduced thus far and foreign financial institutions coming forward to partner the country’s development agenda. Sri Lanka’s economy is on the growth path portraying an overall development in Sri Lanka’s key economic sectors. Therefore foreign businesses/investors interested in investing in Sri Lanka could explore the possibility of investing in Samurai bonds.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/15102019/Z_1 |