Egyptian cabinet approves $500m Samurai bonds

Reuters/Florence Lo

Egypt will issue a new round of Samurai bonds worth $500 million in Japanese yen, as the government seeks to diversify funding sources, a local news daily reported.

The finance ministry will launch the five-year bonds on an undisclosed date, Egypt Today newspaper reported, citing a cabinet statement.

This will be the second time Egypt will issue Samurai bonds, having previously issued bonds worth $500 million in 2022.

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A Samurai bond is a yen-denominated bond issued in Tokyo by non-Japanese firms and is managed under Japanese regulations.

The cabinet pointed out that the new bond issuance is aligned with the government’s efforts to diversify and expand into international markets.

Finance minister Mohamed Maait in September 2022 said that Egypt was considering issuing more green Samurai bonds with Japan during the coming months.

The volume of Japanese direct investment in Egypt increased by 52 percent during the fiscal year of 2021/2022, while the volume of bilateral trade in 2021 reached $1.5 billion, up 13 percent year-on-year.