NEW YORK, June 1 (Reuters) - A group of Belize’s creditors said on Wednesday they will not support the Central American government’s proposal of new terms on its $550 million bond due in 2034 until discussions are held among the parties.
A creditor committee including U.S.-based GMO and Greylock as well as London-based Abrdn said Belize’s authorities rejected their proposal for private discussions and “without any assurance that Belize is open to negotiations or discussions beyond its initial proposal - which remains unacceptable to bondholders — the Committee is not in a position to support the current Consent Solicitation.”
Belize is looking to stretch out to October of 2021 any principal restatement related to the May 20, 2021 coupon payment, which the government missed.
S&P said last month it doesn’t expect the government to make the payment during a 30-day grace period.
The Central American country on Tuesday extended its consent solicitation through Friday June 11 at 5:00 p.m. New York time, the ministry of finance said in a statement.
The $550 million bond, which traded as low as 32.5 cents on the dollar on April 22, last traded at 39 cents according to Refinitiv data.
The central American country has been hit hard by the impact of COVID-19, with a sharp fall in tourism revenue and a rise in spending.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Andrea Ricci)
Source: Reuters