October 29, 2021
The Aa1/AA+ rated Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) successfully executed its second borrowing in the German capital market via the issuance of a US$100-million 20-year registered bond and a US$50-million 22-year registered bond.
“The bond issuance on the German capital market allows CDB to further strengthen the diversification of its investor base away from traditional sources. On highly attractive terms, our Borrowing Member Countries will be able to access these resources to build resilience and support sustainable development initiatives for the overall benefit of Caribbean citizens,” said CDB President Dr Gene Leon.
The bonds were offered on the German market on October 15 by Deutsche Bank AG, acting as sole book runner. Favourable market conditions and a strong appetite for CDB’s paper enabled the Bank to raise 20-year funds at an annual interest rate of 2.55% and 22-year funds at an annual interest rate of 2.50%. The US$50-million bond issuance represents the CDB’s longest-dated borrowing.
This most recent raising allows for the build-out of a yield curve for CDB debt securities and is a testament to the Bank’s financial and operational strength, and its appeal amongst global fixed-income investors.
Prior to this transaction, CDB raised EUR250 million through the placement of a 20-year bond in the German market in 2019 and CHF145 million through the placement of a 12-year bond in the Swiss market in 2016.
Earlier this year, international credit rating agencies, S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service and FitchRatings re-affirmed the Bank’s rating as AA+ (Stable), Aa1 (Stable) and AA+ (Negative), respectively.