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☆ Top development banks, funds set up 'debt-for-nature' task force
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Fishermen go out to sea after Ecuador's goverment expanded the protected marine area around the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador January 24, 2022. REUTERS/Santiago Arcos Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Dec 4 (Reuters) - A consortium of top multilateral development banks (MDB) and climate funds launched a global "task force" on Monday to scale up the number and size of 'debt-for-nature' swaps that countries can do. It will initially be led by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), lenders which between them have been involved in all the recent swaps, also including Barbados and Gabon. The Asian Development Bank, the African Development Bank, France's Agence Française de Développement, and the European Investment Bank will also be part of the task force, as well as the Green Climate Fund and the Global Environment Facility. Development banks play a particularly important role in debt-for-nature swaps because they provide the credit guarantees and/or political risk insurance that make them viable.

Persons: goverment, Santiago Arcos, Ilan Goldfajn, Scott Nathan, Marc Jones, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: REUTERS, Santiago, Reuters, Inter, American Development Bank, U.S . International Development Finance Corporation, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, France's Agence Française, European Investment Bank, Climate Fund, Global, Thomson Locations: Ecuador, Belize, Barbados, Gabon

☆ US commits $553 mln financing for Adani terminal venture at Colombo port
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Traffic moves past the logo of the Adani Group installed at a roundabout on the ring road in Ahmedabad, India, February 2, 2023. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCOLOMBO, Nov 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) said it will provide $553 million financing for a Colombo port terminal project, partly owned by India's Adani Group, advancing the first foray by an Indian company into the sector. Ports-to-edible oils Adani group, controlled by Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, holds a 51% stake in the west container terminal of the port, which also has a terminal run by China Merchants Port Holdings Co Ltd (0144.HK). India extended about $4 billion in swaps and credit lines to Sri Lanka last year, providing critical support to import fuel, medicine and fertiliser during the worst of the crisis. Sri Lankan conglomerate John Keells Holdings owns 34% of the WCT and the rest is held by the state-run Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA).

Persons: Amit Dave, Gautam Adani, Scott Nathan, Uditha Jayasinghe, Kim Coghill Organizations: Adani, REUTERS, Rights, U.S . International Development Finance Corporation, India's Adani, China Merchants Port Holdings Co, HK, West, John Keells Holdings, WCT, Sri Lanka Ports Authority, Thomson Locations: Ahmedabad, India, Colombo, Indian, Sri Lanka, China, Sri

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The U.S. announced a $553- million project Wednesday to build a new, deep-water shipping container terminal in the Port of Colombo as it competes with China in international development financing. The U.S.-backed financing comes at a time when Sri Lanka is struggling to recover from a dire financial and economic crisis. Sri Lanka borrowed heavily from China to build the port and other infrastructure including an airport and a city being built on reclaimed land. Both neighboring India and China are jostling for influence in Sri Lanka and both have already invested in expanding facilities at the Colombo port. Colombo port also has a terminal run by China Merchants Port Holdings.

Persons: ”, Scott Nathan, Sri Lanka’s John Keells, Lanka’s, Wang Wenbin, William & Mary, AidData, China's, saysChina, Bradley Parks, “, ” ___ Didi Tang Organizations: South, U.S . International Development Finance Corp, West, Local, Sri, Sri Lanka’s John Keells Holdings, Initiative, Foreign Ministry, China Merchants Port Holdings, CHEC Port City Colombo Co, China Communications Construction Company, William & Locations: COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, U.S, Port, Colombo, China, Bay, Bengal, Beijing, Hambantota Port, Hambantota, India, oceanside, Port City, Virginia, “ Beijing, Washington

☆ Gabon Joins Blue Bond Wave With $500 Million Debt Refinancing
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Will Horner | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Gabon completed mainland Africa’s first-ever “debt-for-nature swap” Tuesday, refinancing $500 million of its debt and earmarking $163 million in savings for marine conservation, the latest in a burgeoning list of “blue bond” deals. In their place, Gabon issued a $500 million blue bond which matures in 2038. The coupon on the new blue bond was priced at 6.097%, lower than the coupons on the repaid bonds which were between 6.625%-7%. TNC says its blue bond deals have provided $400 million toward conservation efforts. Bank of America, which served as sole initial purchaser, structuring agent and bookrunner on the Gabon deal, declined to reveal its transaction fees.

Persons: Gabon’s, Bond, ”, Ali Bongo Ondimba, TNC wasn’t, Scott Nathan, TNC, Will Horner Organizations: —, Sustainable Business, Moody’s Investors Service, U.S . International Development Finance Corporation, Conservancy, Greenpeace, Bank of America Locations: Gabon, Africa, U.S, Belize, Seychelles, Barbados, Ecuador, Galápagos, william.horner

☆ Natural evolution: Record Galapagos deal sparks clamour for eco-friendly debt swaps
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The growing appetite comes as record numbers of developing world governments face debt pressures due to higher global interest rates. There have been around 140 over the past 35 years, but even including last month's super-sized Galapagos deal they have only involved around $5 billion of debt altogether. The top-level attendees will be urged to do more, not only debt swaps, but also by providing foreign exchange guarantees and automatic debt-payment breaks for countries hit by climate-related disasters. "Seeing something that has a group of countries involved would be amazing," Issa said. Ecuador says it is eyeing another transaction to capitalise on the halo effect from the Galapagos deal.

Persons: Ramzi Issa, Charles Darwin's, Issa, Ilan Goldfajn, Scott Nathan, Nathan, Emmanuel Macron, Mia Mottley, Suisse's Issa, Simon Jessop, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Ecuador, Credit Suisse, Inter, American Development Bank, U.S . International Development Finance Corporation, Reuters Graphics, Thomson Locations: Ecuador, Belize, Barbados, Gabon, Paris, Sri Lanka, Indian, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Seychelles

LONDON, May 9 (Reuters) - Ecuador sealed the world's largest "debt-for-nature" swap on record on Tuesday, selling a new "blue bond" that will funnel at least $12 million a year into conservation of the Galapagos Islands, one of the world's most precious ecosystems. Tuesday's $656 million "Galapagos Bond," as it has been dubbed, will run until 2041 and gave investors that bought it a 5.645% "coupon" or interest rate, its bankers said. Ecuador sovereign bonds currently yield from 17% to 26%, but the new bond has an $85 million 'credit guarantee' from the Inter-American Development Bank and $656 million of political risk insurance from the U.S. International Development Finance Corp (DFC), effectively making it less risky. The driver has been the remote Galapagos Islands, some 600 miles (970 km) off Ecuador's mainland coast, that inspired Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution. Scott Nathan, the chief executive of DFC, said people needed to "stay tuned" for similar deals in other countries and the Galapagos deal had been a long time coming.

☆ U.S. House panel to hold hearing on policy toward China
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Karen Freifeld | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 21 (Reuters) - The House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a hearing next Tuesday with top officials on China policy to identify gaps in pursuing what it called a "more holistic approach" to countering aggression by the Chinese Communist Party. The hearing, announced by the panel's chair, Representative Michael McCaul, a Republican, is called, "Combating the Generational Challenge of CCP Aggression." Alan Estevez, the U.S. Commerce Department's under secretary for industry and security, who oversees restrictions on tech exports to China, is among the witnesses. McCaul has been pressing Estevez on the need to ensure China is not transferring U.S.-origin technology to state sponsors of terrorism, and has called for tighter restrictions on exports to blacklisted companies like China's Huawei, which are viewed as a threat to U.S. national security. Reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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