MINSK, 13 February (BelTA) – The Finance Ministry of Belarus intends to float government bonds nominated in the national currency in April. Belarusian Deputy Finance Minister Andrei Belkovets mentioned the plans during a roundtable session hosted by Cbonds Company on 13 February to discuss the debt market of Belarus, BelTA has learned.
The official said: “We intend to hold an auction in April.” In his words, it will allow gauging the real market demand for the government bonds. “We need to understand the state of the ruble market,” Andrei Belkovets noted. He reminded that no bonds nominated in Belarusian rubles had been floated for two years.
Andrei Belkovets also noted that the Finance Ministry gets criticized for the fact that the foreign currency debt represents 97% of the overall state debt. “This situation is unacceptable. We are going to take a number of steps starting this year in order to gradually increase the share of the debt in Belarusian rubles,” he noted. A certain indicator is already part of the program on enhancing the state finances.
