BNI’s US$500m bonds to roll in Q2

JAKARTA: State-owned Bank Negara Indonesia (BBNI), the nation’s fourth-largest lender, will start offering US$500 million worth of dollar-denominated bonds in the second quarter of this year, a top executive says.

“We will see how the market responds. We may upsize the amount to anticipate oversubscription. The global bonds will have 5 to 10 years’ maturity,” BNI president director Gatot Suwondo said on Thursday.

“The bank has appointed three foreign underwriters for the issuance,” Gatot said without disclosing the names.

“We hope to get the license to issue bonds from Bank Indonesia within one or two days and seek approval from shareholders. Then, we will conduct a road show to Asian countries and London, hopefully this month,” Gatot said. BNI has scheduled a shareholders meeting for April 18, according to a file submitted to the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX).