Israel Raises $5 Billion in Bonds for Coronavirus Crisis Aid

This represents the state’s longest-term bond issuance to date, as well as the largest bond issue in the history of the state.

By Aryeh Savir, TPS

Israel completed a successful bond issue on Wednesday, selling $5 billion worth of government bonds, including $1 billion over 100 years.

The three series of bonds by Israel’s Treasury included $2 billion over 10 years at a 2.75% annual interest; $2 billion over 30 years at a 3.875% annual interest; and $1 billion over 100 years at 4.5% annual interest.

The issue was also the highest demand in the State of Israel’s history with $25 billion. In this move, Israel joins a limited number of countries in the world that issued in this range.

Bank of America Securities, Barclays Bank, Goldman Sachs, and Citibank acted as underwriters for the issue.

Israel issued the bonds to help finance the NIS 80 billion ($22 B.) Coronavirus (COVID-19) emergency aid package the country announced earlier this week to assist the economy which has come to an almost complete standstill.

Over one million Israelis registered for unemployment in the last month, an uptick from the 30,000 who registered last month.

In a press conference on Wednesday night, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the high demand for the bonds was “additional proof of the confidence that the global financial markets have in the Israeli economy.

“Leading global financial elements [raced to buy] our bonds and this is a great expression of confidence in the Israeli economy. It joins the expression of confidence that ranked us in first place in the index of the safest countries in dealing with the coronavirus,” he stated.

Israel on Tuesday was ranked the safest place in the world with regard to the outbreak of the Coronavirus by the Deep Knowledge Group, a consortium of organizations and companies working in breakthrough technology and high tech engineering innovation through scientific advances.

Netanyahu noted that “businesses and economies are collapsing around the world. This is not unique to Israel, and in Israel I would say that the situation is better. We are capable of making these corrections, of presenting this assistance, because our economy is strong and we will see to it that it remains such.”