In January 2024, the African Development Bank issued the first hybrid bond from a supranational in the public markets. The AfDB’s US$750m perpetual non-call 10.5-year, issued as a sustainable bond, finally appeared following the announcement of plans to do so earlier in 2023 and completion of investor presentations in September of that year. The World Bank, meanwhile, chose a 'friends and family' route for its hybrid capital experiment, raising US$750m from its shareholders. "We’ll b

Japan is back on the radar for international investors. The country has made headlines in recent months, not just because of the rally in its stock market but also due to the end of its negative interest rate policy and taking the first steps in financing its ambitious transition plans. A combination of factors has contributed to the resurgence of Japan’s allure for offshore buyers – the magnitude of which can be measured in the performance of the stock market. In February, the Nikke

When self-styled 'anarcho-capitalist' Javier Milei pulled off a shock victory in Argentina's presidential election in November, he promised to take a chainsaw to excessive government spending and bring a halt to the country’s decades-long decline. That script might be different, but it is a story that Argentina has seen and heard before – a reformist president taking on the country’s dysfunctional political system and seeking to revive its beleaguered economy. The only question

In the near decade since their founding, both the Asian Infrastructure Development Bank and New Development Bank have found themselves in the crosshairs of a geopolitical tsunami thanks to their share ownership by undemocratic countries: China, which controls 26.5% of the AIIB by voting rights and 19.42% of the NDB; and Russia, which also owns 19.42% of the NDB and has a 6% voting right in the AIIB. The relative calm of 2015 when China could grumble about the non-reform of the Bretton Woods post

Outgoing UK Debt Management Office chief executive Robert Stheeman signed off in style with his final syndication on June 11, with an £11bn 10-year deal that attracted a record order book of £110bn. It was a fitting valediction for Stheeman, but the deal itself was also significant because it hinted at the shifting tides his successor, Jessica Pulay, must deal with when she takes over the role on July 1. That is because aside from the DMO’s green Gilt programme, this was the fi

Eurobond issuance out of the Middle East started to surge in 2023 and strong momentum has continued into this year. From the beginning January to June, issuance from the region amounted to US$66bn in 61 separate transactions, compared with US$69bn across 98 deals for the whole of last year, according to LSEG data. In 2022, it totalled US$41.4bn with 86 deals. Yet last year's issuance remained below that of 2020, a bumper year, when it amounted to US$111.4bn across 161 deals. Analysts say emergin

Latin America’s green, social and sustainable sovereign bond market has been growing at a rapid clip over the past five years, rising from just US$2.4bn in 2019 to US$19.2bn in the first half of 2023 alone, according to Climate Bonds Initiative data. Yet one country had been conspicuous by its absence during that period: Brazil. The region’s largest economy – home to about 60% of the Amazon rainforest and where more than a quarter of its population are estimated to live in pove

A few higher-rated sub-Saharan African sovereigns are managing to tap the Eurobond market again after a long hiatus but a large number of the continent's countries continue to grapple with a severe debt issue. Sub-Saharan Africa’s Eurobond market was entirely shut off for the whole of 2023, but three sovereigns managed to issue debt at the start of this year – Ivory Coast, Benin and Kenya. In total, they issued US$4.85bn of Eurobonds and their offerings were as much as six times subs