Greece's longest bond sale to date, since the government's financial turmoil has been met with robust demand, is the latest indication that capitalists are delighted to help the country's cautious return to self-funding.
The Mediterranean nation sold its first 15-year euro bonds at near record lows, signaling its interest to return to normalcy following a crippling debt mess.
Greece received over $15 billion in orders for its latest bond sale late Tuesday, as the government sought to raise between $2.5 billion and $2.7 billion. Investors working on the agreement disclosed the bond was priced at just fewer than 2 percent.
Greece loaned around $2.75 billion with a cost of 165 basis points over similar expiry mid-swaps, sources with knowledge of the matter said.
Pricing was at just below 1.9 percent and the offers settled above $19 billion, near its record of $20 billion in a 2014 sale of 5-year bonds.
The sale follows Fitch's upgrade of the country's credit rating to Double B, leaving Greece around two notches to get an Investment Grade rating, which would make the government qualified for purchase by the European Central Bank under its easing policy.
The last offering of this tenor was sealed just weeks prior to the country being granted a financial rescue, shutting Greece from foreign trade. It raised more than $7 billion during the period, at 5.4 percent.
A huge chunk of Greece's debt remains in the form of bonds from the International Monetary Fund and the European Union -- a settlement of a host of bailouts during the financial crisis.
Fortunately for Greece, it has enough cash reserves to take care of all its funding requirements for the current year, Dimitri Tsakonas, director of the Greek Debt Management Office, stressed.
With the latest unloading of bonds, Athens wants to deliver a strong message that bankers and investors have faith on the government's long-term debt sustainability.
In 2018, just before the culmination of the country's third bailout program, the euro area decided to initiate a host of additional loan relief measures that will set the stage for an easy loan payment course until 2032.
Greek bonds were the most impressive performers in the Europe region in 2019 as bankers preferred their substantially high returns considering a large volume of the euro-area loans turned negative.
Greece's benchmark ten-year output was unchanged at 1.17 percent late Tuesday, having registered a record 1.15 percent as of Monday.
Athens hired HSBC Holdings, BNP Paribas, Barclays Bank, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs Group, and JP Morgan Chase as joint lead managers for the government's bond issuance.
