Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC)
Following the statement made on May 3 (local time) in Bali, Indonesia, by Mr. Kaoru Yosano, the Minister of Finance and Minister of State for Financial Services and Economic and Fiscal Policy, pledging to launch the Market Access Support Facility (MASF) by JBIC, we are working out details for the implementation of this facility in line with the policy of the Government of Japan.
MASF will encourage efforts to regain access to international markets by Asian developing countries that have regularly raised funds through sovereign bond issuance in international financial markets but are temporarily unable to do so due to the current financial turmoil. Specifically, the facility will provide guarantees totaling up to 500 billion yen for Samurai bonds*1 issued in the Japanese bond market by Asian developing countries. It is planned that , following a request from each of these countries, a guarantee commitment will be made to a qualified country. (The deadline for submitting a request is set at the end of Japanese fiscal 2009).
In April, JBIC signed a program agreement with the Government of Indonesia, which included a guarantee for its Samurai bonds. Under the MASF, similar support for Samurai bonds will be expanded to include other Asian developing countries, thereby facilitating their funding through market. It will also foster the Samurai bond market, while serving to bring stability to Asian economies as well as global financial markets.
Since “responding to disruptions in financial order in the international economy” is one of the fields where JBIC performs financial functions to fulfill its mission, JBIC is committed to proactively coping with the current global financial turmoil by mobilizing a variety of financial tools.
- *1 Samurai bonds are yen-denominated bonds issued in the Japanese financial market by a foreign government or company.