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Government decides against selling sovereign bonds

19 December 2018, MVT 15:26
Minister of Finance Ibrahim Ameer
19 December 2018, MVT 15:26

Minister of Finance Ibrahim Ameer, on Tuesday, stated that the government has abandoned plans to auction USD 150 million of sovereign bonds.

The minister gave a statement to local media outlet Mihaaru, attributing the decision to the recently announced USD 200 million of budget support from India.

Although the 2019 State Budget was initially formulated to include the sale of sovereign bonds, the finance minister previously stated that the decision would be reversed if India agreed to provide financial aid.

The Maldivian government first sold sovereign bonds in 2017. While USD 200 million of bonds were sold in that year, the government earned USD 250 million through the sale of bonds in 2018.

India has agreed to provide a total of USD 1.4 billion as financial assistance to Maldives including USD 200 million as budget support, USD 800 million for government-initiated projects, and USD 400 million as currency swap.

Ameer stated that India's financial aid would be utilized in a manner that does not increase the level of national debt.

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