Ghana extends domestic debt exchange deadline for third time

Ghana has again extended the deadline to register for its domestic debt exchange to Jan. 31, in order to build consensus among stakeholders, finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta tweeted on Monday.

The crisis-hit nation launched a domestic debt exchange at the start of December, days before clinching a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $3 billion rescue package.

The IMF has said that its board will approve the deal only if Ghana undergoes comprehensive debt restructuring.

The deadline for the debt swap, initially set for Dec. 19, had previously been extended to Dec. 30 and then to Jan. 16. 

Revisions to the initial offer exempted pensioners after a public outcry but later brought in individual bondholders who were originally exempted.

Ghana last week offered to pay holders of its 2023 bond a 2 %cash fee in exchange for registering for the exchange, but opposition to the programme has remained pervasive.

“Ghana spent a lot of money solving the problems it had with its banks from the 2014-2015 crisis, so you want to think very carefully to avoid jeopardizing them,” says Gregory Smith, emerging markets fund manager at London-based M&G Investments.