Peru is tapping global investors for the first time this year, raising $2.5 billion through a sustainability bond to buy back existing sovereign debt and finance government spending. Sovereign bonds gained.
The sol-denominated notes mature in 2033 and revenue will be used to fund green and social expenditures, according to person familiar with the matter. The bond was launched at a yield of 7.35%, slightly below the initial guidance of 7.7%, the person said.
The South American nation is looking to buy back existing sol-denominated sovereign bonds that are coming due this year, 2024, 2026 and 2028, according to a statement by the government. It is also offering to swap those notes with the newly-issued bonds. It’s unclear how much the government will either buy back or aims to swap. Citigroup, HSBC, JPMorgan & Chase and Banco Santander are managers for the bond sale.
“So far, it looks appealing,” said William Snead, an analyst at BBVA in New York. “Investors are getting a premium for tendering the old bonds. So it looks like a win-win scenario for investors.”
Sol-denominated notes due in 2024 rose more than 0.6 cents on the sol Wednesday to 99.9 cents, the most since November, according to indicative pricing data by Bloomberg
In general, Peru’s sol-denominated sovereign bonds have returned 8.76% this year, outperforming most emerging-market local-currency debt, according to data compiled on a Bloomberg index. The country’s dollar notes, meantime, have handed investors 3.27% returns this year, beating the average of 2.21% among peers.
Peru also said Wednesday that it planned to buy back existing dollar-denominated bonds that mature from 2025 to 2027, as well as those due in 2030 and 2031.
