CBK Governor Kamau Thugge | Photo courtesy.
Nairobi, Kenya, Feb 15-The Kenya shilling has gained against the US dollar in on of the steadiest gains in nearly a decade largely influenced by an increase in is foreign currency reserves.
JEDCA MEDIA has independently established that most lenders in the country, among them Equity bank now sell the greenback at Ksh140.8 while buying it at Ksh135.8.
Likewise, Stanbic bank sells the UDS dollar at Ksh145 while buying it at Ksh153. Several Sky forex bureaus located in Nairobi’s Central Business District are buying the greenback at Ksh120 while selling it between Ksh148 and Ksh158.
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The drop comes in the wake of Kenya buying back a portion of its 313 billion Eurobond to attract Ksh957 billion in orders exceeding its $1.5 billion (Ksh239.3 billion) target.
The newly issued loan facility will be paid in three equal instalments in 2029, 2030, and 2031, with a weighted average life of six years.
The National Treasury added Tuesday that the debt will offer a 10.4 percent yield.
“The proceeds from the 2031 Eurobonds will fund the offer to buy Kenya’s existing $2 billion Eurobonds due in 2024, pending demand in the Tender Offer. Results are expected on February 15, 2024,” Treasury said in a statement.
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“The combined transactions are a crucial part of the government’s strategy to smoothen the maturity profile of the 2024 Eurobonds and proactively manage debt liabilities,” it added.
The payment of the Eurobond and subsequent inflows of dollars from the World bank which has seemingly cooled down fears about Kenya’s ability to repay the debt points to the steady growth of the local unit.
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) Governor Kamau Thugge on Wednesday last week hinted at the buyback plan, noting that the global debt environment was positive.
“There is a window for Kenya to return to global markets to refinance the 2 billion dollars Eurobond maturity in June,” Thugge said.
