WASHINGTON, D.C., March 16 — The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has made its debut into the Russian rouble market with the launch of a US$100 million dollar-denominated, rouble-linked global bond issue.
The one-year notes carry an annual coupon of 20 percent and were issued at a price of 97.25 percent of par. The return to investors is linked to the Russian rouble foreign exchange rate at the maturity of the notes. The proceeds of the issue will be swapped into US dollar floating-rate funds.
The lead manager of the issue is Merrill Lynch International, London, with seven co-managers in the syndicate group. The issue, launched on March 12, is expected to be placed with investors in the United States and Europe.
This issue, which is among the first of its kind, is part of IFC’s goal of contributing to the development of new capital markets. IFC, part of the World Bank Group, fosters economic growth in the developing world by financing private sector investments, mobilizing capital in international financial markets and providing technical assistance and advice to governments and businesses.
This transaction, under IFC’s Global Medium Term Note Program, brings IFC’s market borrowings to about US $3,528 billion since the start of this fiscal year on July 1, 1997. The long-term debt of IFC is rated AAA by both Standard and Poor’s Corp. and Moody’s Investors Service.
