JOHANNESBURG, Feb 15 (Reuters) - A domestic debt
exchange implemented by Ghana will "significantly weaken" banks'
capitalisation, leading to material shortfalls at some, ratings
agency Fitch said on Wednesday.
The exchange, which extended maturity dates on a range of
bonds due in 2023 to between 2027 and 2033 and swapped other
bonds for 12 issues maturing between 2027 and 2038, is part of a
restructuring of domestic and external debt that is a condition
of a $3 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout.
Ghana's finance ministry, battling a deep economic crisis
that has seen inflation spiral above 50%, led to spending cuts
and to interest rates soaring at record speeds, said on Tuesday
that almost 85% of "eligible" bondholders had registered for the
exchange.
The Ghana Association of Banks agreed in January to the debt
transfer after the government offered better terms. The exchange
was launched in December and had to be extended five times, with
multiple changes to the deal for different sets of creditors.
Fitch said it had estimated the original terms of the
exchange would inflict an NPV loss on creditors of about 50%.
"The final terms provide only a small reduction in this," it
said.
(Reporting by Rachel Savage; editing by John Stonestreet)
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