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Kenya raises Sh194bn in new Eurobond sale
Kenya has raised $1.5 billion (Sh193.95 billion) in the latest Eurobond sale at an interest rate of 9.5 percent, after realising offers of $4.9 billion (Sh633.6 billion) from investors.
The new bond, which will mature in March 2036, was floated to provide funding for a buyback of an existing $900 million (Sh116.4 billion) Eurobond that was issued in 2019, at a rate of seven percent.
In the buyback which closes on March 3, bondholders have been offered a price of $1,002.50 for every bond unit of $1,000 they are selling back to the government.
This 2019 bond was due for repayment in three staggered instalments of $300 million (Sh38.8 billion) starting in May 2025, continuing into May 2026, and finally, May 2027. The new Eurobond now allows the Treasury to refinance the whole amount in one go.
The additional $600 million (Sh77.6 billion) that the government has taken up in the 2025 bond—after repaying the 2019 paper—will go towards general budgetary support as part of the exchequer’s external borrowing target of Sh280 billion in the 2024/2025 fiscal year.
This is the second Eurobond buyback the Treasury has done, after the repurchase in February 2024 of a $1.48 billion (Sh191.9 billion) portion of the $2 billion (Sh259.3 billion) 2014 Eurobond four months before its maturity date. This buyback was financed using the proceeds of a new seven-year bond of $1.5 billion (Sh194.5 billion).
cmwaniki@ke.nationmedia.com