BRICS bank to issue Chinese yuan, Indian rupee bonds in 2017

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The BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) has plans to fund 15 projects and issue bonds worth around 2.5 billion to 3 billion US dollars in 2017, said the president of the bank K.V. Kamath on Friday.

The bonds will be issued twice,‍ one denominated in Chinese yuan and the other in Indian rupee.

The bank sold its first three billion yuan (437 million US dollars) yuan-denominated bonds in China last year in July, to fund clean energy projects in member states.

CFP Photo

Following last year's issuance, the yuan-denominated bonds are possibly going to be issued in the second half of this year, at a value similar to last year, of around three billion yuan.

Between 300 and 500 million US dollars of rupee-denominated masala bonds will be issued after July, Kamath added. Masala bonds are rupee-denominated bonds issued outside India.

In 2016 the NDB funded seven projects, most of which were connected to the clean energy and transportation sectors. Kamath said the loans will go to more sectors this year. In India for example, the bank will prioritize rural drinking water networks and infrastructure projects.

The BRICS bank was officially opened in Shanghai in 2015, after the leaders of founding members Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa signed a treaty in Fortaleza, Brazil, in 2014. The initial authorized capital of the bank was 100 billion US dollars.