Uzbekistan for the first time placed government bonds with a 10-year maturity on the Republican Currency Exchange. The total value of placements topped 10 billion soums, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement.
The bonds’ weighted average coupon rate is reportedly 15% per annum, which is a benchmark for a 10-year period.
In addition, government bonds worth of 174.5 billion soums were issued with a 5-year maturity and a yield of 14.5% per annum.
To diversify the public debt portfolio and reduce foreign exchange risks, the Ministry of Finance is increasing the volume of government bonds issuance and is said to be taking "systemic measures to develop domestic financial markets" in order to attract new participants - non-residents, individuals, insurance companies and others.
In November 2020, for the first time, Uzbekistan issued sovereign international bonds worth of 2 trillion soums, and in July 2021 - worth of 2.5 trillion soums. The circulation timeline in both cases is 3 years. The bonds issue in the national currency is aimed at reducing currency risks in the public debt portfolio.
