Iceland eyes bond issue
ICELAND is planning to meet investors this month about a possible Eurobond, one of the lead managers said yesterday, as the country prepares its first international sale of bonds since its economic meltdown.
Iceland, which is recovering from its worst-ever downturn following the collapse of its top banks, has planned investor meetings for June 1-8 and has appointed Barclays Capital, Citigroup and UBS as lead managers.
Iceland is keen to return to the international capital markets and get its economy back on a normal footing but has been prevented from doing so due to uncertainties over a dispute with Britain and the Netherlands over more than $5bn (£3bn) in “Icesave” debt.
The government now expects most of that debt to be covered by the estate of Landsbanki, the failed bank which ran the Icesave accounts, while aid from the IMF and its Nordic neighbours looks set to flow uninterrupted.