Zambia: IFC’s Zambezi bond is a success

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) issued its first local currency denominated bond in Zambia on 19 September. The ‘Zambezi’ bond also represents a new venture for Zambia, as the IFC is the first non-resident issuer in the country’s domestic capital markets. The IFC bond was well received by domestic investors as well as international buyers spurred on by the US Federal Reserve’s unexpected announcement a day earlier that it would not begin to taper its $85bn/month asset-purchasing programme. With a final issuance of 150m kwacha ($28.4m) – 50m kwacha higher than originally planned – the order book was over 700m kwacha, equivalent to an oversubscription of 4.8 times.