Indonesia Raises $1.75 Billion in Retail Bond Sale, Draws Record Investors

OBLIGASI - JAKARTA. Indonesia raised 25 trillion rupiah ($1.75 billion) in this year's first retail bond sale, its finance ministry said on Monday, part of efforts to close a projected 2022 budget gap and fund a pandemic recovery programme.

The rupiah-denominated bonds were offered with an annual coupon rate of 4.9%, which the ministry in a statement said was the lowest ever, and a 3-year maturity.

Indonesia has been trying to get local investors to buy debt and reduce its reliance on foreign funds to finance its budget deficit. The latest estimate for this year's deficit is around 4% of gross domestic product (GDP).

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The ministry said 56,238 investors bought the bonds, a record number for a retail sovereign bond issuance. Nearly half of those were "millennials" aged 20 to 40, in keeping with a trend seen in recent years.

The government has set a target to issue 100 trillion rupiah ($6.98 billion) worth of retail bonds this year, slightly higher than last year's 97.21 trillion rupiah, according to media.