Egypt’s CBE extends maturity of US bonds repurchase by 1.5 years

Egypt’s CBE extends maturity of US bonds repurchase by 1.5 years

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has agreed to extend the term of the US dollar bonds repurchase by 1.5 years from the original 4.5-year-term, increasing the overall maturity of these bonds to six years, CBE announced on Monday.

The CBE said in a statement that the approval of this extension is unanimously supported by the current consortium of banks, and that it reflects the continued strong affirmation and vote of confidence by the international market in the continued success of the homegrown economic reform program. 

This action comes despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing risk that the global economy is facing, according to the statement.

The CBE explained that it has received a number of proposals that called for such extension.

The bank said it found that an extension is consistent with the objective of enhancing its liability management.

The term of a repurchase transaction originally started as of 10 October 2018 with a consortium of international banks.

Meanwhile, the CBE announced that it had received 38 offers from international and local financial institutions worth $1.7 billion to invest in the domestic treasury bills (T-bills) in US currency, which were floated on Monday.