D.F.C. seeks $20 million in bond issue

Bond issues seem to be the latest way to raise capital on the Belizean market and the most recent institution to announce a bond issue is the Development Finance Corporation. The D.F.C. has announced its intention to raise twenty million Belize dollars by offering bonds bearing an interest rate of nine percent. In addition to the rate, which is a full point higher than the best bank CD’s, what makes the D.F.C. bonds attractive is their relatively short maturity of five years and the option for purchasers to redeem them at sixty days notice. Proceeds from the public offering will be used to make loans to D.F.C. customers in the agriculture, industry, tourism, service and educational sectors. Traditionally, D.F.C. has obtained its loan funds on concessional terms from international sources. According to D.F.C. General Manager Troy Gabb, despite the relatively high cost of this money, his institution will still be able to offer loans at the traditional rate of thirteen percent. The bonds come in denominations starting at one thousand dollars and a prospectus is available from any D.F.C. office.