YEREVAN, December 25. /ARKA/. Armenia plans to issue new Eurobonds in 2025, said Armenian Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan.
“Our medium-term strategy for public debt management indicates that we will issue Eurobonds in 2025. I am pleased to announce that we have significantly reduced refinancing risks, as last year we repurchased part of the Eurobonds that were due for repayment in 2025. We have substantially reduced the burden that was scheduled for 2025. However, yes, we plan to move forward with issuing Eurobonds, and we are currently carrying out preparatory work,” Hovhannisyan said at a press conference on the results of 2024.
He added that additional information will be provided later.
In October, the Armenian government repurchased $188 million of the $500 million in Eurobonds maturing in March 2025.
Armenia’s Eurobonds
Armenia issued its first Eurobond on September 19, 2013, with $700 million in bonds, offering a 6% annual yield and a 7-year maturity (until March 30, 2020). As of July 2021, $500 million of these bonds remain in circulation, as the Armenian Ministry of Finance repurchased $200 million.
The second issuance took place on March 26, 2015, with $500 million in bonds at a 7.15% yield and a 10-year maturity (until March 26, 2025).
On September 26, 2019, Armenia, through the Ministry of Finance, placed $500 million in Eurobonds on the international capital market, with a 10-year maturity and a 3.95% coupon yield, significantly lower than the yields of the previous two issues.
In April 2020, Finance Minister Atom Janjughazyan stated that Armenia was considering the possibility of issuing new Eurobonds, potentially even in drams. He mentioned that during the September 2019 issuance, investors expressed a willingness to invest 4-5 times the declared volume.
On February 4, 2021, Armenia successfully issued $750 million in Eurobonds, with a 10-year maturity and a 3.6% coupon yield. As Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan noted at the time, demand exceeded $3 billion, and the placement occurred on the most favorable terms in Armenia’s history – at the lowest rate. It was also noted that part of the proceeds would be used to build a “financial cushion.”
On December 1, 2023, the Armenian Ministry of Finance announced plans to partially repurchase Eurobonds to reduce refinancing and exchange rate risks. The ministry will also work on increasing the share of medium-term bonds amid declining interest rates.
