Govt. appoints Citi as Dealer Manager for proposed Sovereign Bond Exchange

The Government has appointed Citigroup Global Markets Inc. (Citi) as the Dealer Manager for the proposed Sovereign Bond Exchange following a competitive bidding process.

Treasury in a statement said Sri Lanka has been in negotiations with holders of Sri Lanka’s international sovereign bonds to restructure existing bonds to be exchanged for new securities. 



Sri Lanka has now reached an advanced stage of these negotiations as Agreements in Principle on restructuring terms were reached with foreign and domestic holders of sovereign bonds as announced on 19 September. 

In anticipation of the next steps in this process, on 27 March 2024, the Finance Ministry, on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka, invited financial institutions to submit proposals to be considered as Dealer Manager for the said Exchange Offer (notice on RFPs - https://www.treasury.gov.lk/api/file/2226ab29-dfce-484e-a86d-27cbc94b8c1e).

The selected Dealer Manager(s) would support the execution of the bond exchange, consent solicitation, legal documentation, and other processes involved in design and successful implementation of the exchange.

The Finance Ministry appointed a procurement committee chaired by the Finance Ministry Treasury Operations Department Director General. A total of five entities submitted proposals to be considered as Dealer Manager, all of whom were shortlisted. 

Based on the scores achieved in the technical and financial evaluation, in consultation with the financial advisers and the legal advisers of the Government, Citi was selected as the Dealer Manager for Sri Lanka’s proposed sovereign bond exchange. The legal counsel appointed by Citi to advise it is Hogan Lovells.

The Government intends to launch the formal exchange process at the earliest, with a view to concluding Sri Lanka’s public debt restructuring process.