Egypt to raise $2bn from global bond markets, minister says

Egypt will raise $2 billion from international bond markets by the end of June, finance minister Ahmed Kouchouk said.

Demand for Egypt’s international bonds has picked up as global yields declined, which reflects a better risk outlook and rising investor confidence, he said at the ninth Annual Capital Markets Summit.

The government is committed to cutting external debt by $1 billion to $2 billion annually by diversifying its funding sources, attracting new investors and extending debt maturities at lower costs, he said.

Egypt is also preparing to issue retail bonds for individual investors, Kouchouk said, without providing a timeline.

Cairo returned to the international bond market early last year with a $2 billion issuance, its first since 2021, to bridge an estimated $10 billion financing gap for fiscal year 2024/2025. 

In September, Kouchouk said the budget deficit for 2024-25, which ended on June 30, nearly doubled to EGP1.2 trillion ($24 billion). The central bank said last month that the country paid close to $39 billion in external debt service in 2024-25.

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