Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
In November 2019, Bank of China provided a $200 million loan to the State Bank of Pakistan to shore up the country’s foreign exchange reserves (as captured via Record ID#92085). The original borrowing terms of the loan included a 2 year maturity (final maturity date: November 2021) and an interest rate between 6-month LIBOR plus a 2.65% margin. The loan was repaid in full in November 2022. However, it is unclear if the borrower ever secured a maturity extension through a debt rescheduling agreement. Then, on September 13, 2022, Bank of China and the State Bank of Pakistan signed a $200 million rollover loan agreement to shore up the country’s foreign exchange reserves (as captured via Record ID#97791). The loan carried the following borrowing terms: a 2 year maturity and an interest rate between 3-month LIBOR plus a 2.65% margin. It was fully disbursed in November 2022 and was reportedly used by the borrower to repay a $1 billion Sukuk bond in December 2022.
Staff comments
1. AidData has estimated the all-in interest rate by adding 2.65% to average 3-month LIBOR in November 2022 (4.649%). 2. The lender of record is identified as 'BANK OF CHINA SR.BD.' by the Government of Pakistan. See https://ead.gov.pk/SiteImage/Publication/Quarterly%20Statistic%20Bulletin%20July%20-%20September,%202022-23.pdf and https://www.finance.gov.pk/survey/chapter_24/9_public%20debt.pdf 3. The Government of Pakistan project (loan) identification number is BOC13092022.