About P321 billion worth of bonds are eligible for the government’s “switch” offer, allowing holders of specific securities to shift to the ongoing retail treasury bonds (RTBs) at no extra cost, the Department of Finance (DOF) said.
The DOF said in a statement over the weekend investors of specific bonds maturing in 2020 and 2021 will be allowed to do the switch.
“The program intends to provide holders of the aforementioned securities with a convenient reinvestment option for their current holdings. Interested holders should approach their broker or dealer to facilitate the submission of their offers,” the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said in a separate statement.
“The procedure for the RTB 24 exchange offer will mimic that of RTB 23, where the national registry of scripless securities, through its switch module, will serve as the electronic platform whereby offers to exchange will be submitted, allocated and settled,” it added.
The BTr already awarded P192.707 billion worth of RTBs during the price-setting auction last week.
These RTBs will have a five-year tenor and will be offered to the general investing public in minimum denominations of P5,000 from July 16 to August 7, 2020, or any earlier date as may be determined by the BTr, at an interest rate of 2.625 percent per annum.
The BTr said proceeds from the issuance will be used to aid the country’s efforts to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 and to support the sectors most affected by the pandemic, such as the health care system, unemployed overseas Filipino workers, and the struggling micro, small and medium enterprises.
It will also be used to fund the government’s infrastructure projects, refinance existing debt obligations and for other national expenditures, with focus on the government’s efforts to address the current health crisis, the agency said.
Land Bank of the Philippines, Development Bank of the Philippines, First Metro Investment Corp., PNB Capital and Investment Corp., Chinabank Capital Corp., SB Capital Investment Corp., RCBC Capital Corp., BDO Capital, BPI Capital Corp. and UnionBank are the issue managers for this issuance.
The BTr’s last RTB issuance was done last February, raising P250 billion in new money and P60 billion through “switch” offers for three-year RTBs.
The agency said interested investors of RTBs should have a peso account with selling agent banks accredited by the BTr or a Bonds.PH account.
