By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government, through the Debt Management Office (DMO), has paid the $500 million Eurobond it obtained a few years ago from offshore investors.
Eurobond is a debt instrument that’s denominated in a currency other than the home currency of the country or market in which it is issued. They are frequently grouped together by the currency in which they are denominated, such as eurodollar or Euro-yen bonds.
The Eurobond was issued in July 2013, as part of a dual-tranche $1 billion Eurobond, for a tenor of 10 years at a coupon of 6.375 per cent per annum. It paid the remaining part on its due date, July 12, 2023.
“Nigeria had previously redeemed a $500 million Eurobond in July 2018, another $500 million Eurobond in January 2021, and a $300 million Diaspora Bond in June 2022,” the DMO said.
“These, together with the $500 million Eurobond redeemed today, bring the total amount of securities redeemed by Nigeria in the International Capital Market (ICM) to $1.8 billion.
“Nigeria’s successful redemption of its Eurobonds and Diaspora Bond in the ICM over the past six (6) years is a demonstration of its strong debt management operations and planning.”
In January, the debt office said Nigeria’s total debt could rise to $172 billion after the loan-to-bond swap and new borrowings to fund the 2023 budget. in June, with the addition the Ways and Means loan from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to the total stock, Nigeria’s debt portfolio hit the sum of N72.7 trillion.
Modupe Gbadeyanka