China’s SAFE provides $500 million deposit loan to shore up Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves on June 27, 2021

On June 27, 2020, China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) provided a $500 million loan to State Bank of Pakistan in order to shore up the country’s foreign exchange reserves. The loan carried the following terms: a 1-year maturity (final maturity date: June 27, 2021), a 1-year grace period, and an interest rate of 12-month LIBOR plus a 1% margin. On June 27, 2021, the $500 million SAFE deposit loan from 2020 was repaid and reissued (i.e. 'rolled over') with a maturity date of June 27, 2022. One year later, on June 27, 2022, the $500 million SAFE deposit loan from 2021 was repaid and reissued (i.e. 'rolled over') with a maturity date of June 27, 2023. The Government of Pakistan announced in early June 2023 that it intended to repay and rollover the loan on June 27, 2023.

Additional details

1. AidData has estimated the all-in interest rate by adding 1% to average 12-month LIBOR in June 2021 (0.243%). 2. Until 2018, all SAFE loans were managed by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). However, during the 2018-2019 fiscal year, the loans were reclassified and are now under the aegis of the Economic Affairs Division (EAD).

Number of official sources

1

Number of total sources

11