MANILA, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Friday that it has raised 5.22 billion Philippine pesos (roughly 100 million U.S. dollars) from a new issue of local currency bonds in the international market.
ADB issued bonds in the Philippine domestic capital market in 2005 and 2007 but Friday's issue is the first time it has mobilized Philippine peso funding from international investors through a currency-linked structure, the Manila-based bank said in a statement.
Currency-linked bonds are denominated in the local currency but settled in U.S. dollars. The bonds pay a fixed interest rate of 5.25 percent and have a final maturity of four years, the ADB said.
The ADB said the proceeds of the bonds will support ADB's growing local currency operations in the Philippines and help to reduce foreign exchange risk for ADB's borrowers.
"Our program to issue local currency bonds in ADB member countries has been very successful. We hope that the Philippines can become a cornerstone of this program moving forward," ADB Treasurer Pierre Van Peteghem said.
The ADB said the bonds were fully placed with institutional investors in Asia, Europe, and the Americas. JP Morgan acted as sole lead manager.
ADB is a regular borrower in mainstream international bond markets but has also led issuance in developing Asian countries as part of efforts to promote domestic bond markets as an alternative to bank lending.
