5.5 million dollars of Bradley bond sold

Darrell Bradley

While bondholders and government are at a standstill, the Belize City municipal bond is trading beyond expectations. Since going public on Monday, Belize City Mayor, Darrell Bradley says there has been high demand by the business community for the bonds that will finance the ongoing infrastructure works in the City. The Belize City Council has put on the market an initial ten million dollar offering in tranche one of the Municipal Development Bond.  The limited bonds, worth two hundred dollars each, are purchased through the Central Bank of Belize and so far, more than five point five million dollars have been sold. Of the three portions of investment available within that portfolio, the largest investments are in ten-year bonds which carry an interest rate of eight percent.  While an official tally is expected at the close of business on Friday, the Social Security Board has already committed to purchasing the remainder of the bonds.  That balance is an estimated four point three million dollars.  According to Mayor Darrell Bradley, the sale of bonds has been successful so far.

Darrell Bradley, Belize City Mayor

“We went to market on Monday.  We opened the sale at the Central Bank and from Monday we had received word from the Central Bank at the close of business that sales were very healthy, interest was good, persons were calling.  They had even called over to the City Hall here asking questions about the prospectus.  We gave a couple presentations and things like that in the last couple days, answering queries and just really trying to get firm commitments.  Today is Thursday and we fully expect that, in short order, the first tranche of the bond will be fully, fully subscribed.”

Isani Cayetano

“Are there any figures preliminarily that can account for how much has been sold or what is being generated thus far?”

Darrell Bradley

“We expect that by tomorrow, by the close of business tomorrow we would have sold everything in the first tranche but I want to caution for persons to recall that what the procedure is, is that persons make their applications to the Central Bank of Belize and when they apply, their application has to be accompanied by their payment and the Belize City Council, together with the Central Bank, does a due diligence, in terms of checking things, like for money laundering and that kind of thing and then we make a formal acceptance of the offer.  We fully expect to accept all the offers that are in there but we still have to do our due diligence.  But I expect that what we will do is that we will close the subscription prior to the date of December twenty-first, which is the deadline which is twenty-eight days that we had anticipated that it would have been open.  But, because of the interest I’m anticipating that we may close as early as tomorrow, in respect of the first tranche.”