Egypt picks Dechert to advise for 2016 international bond issuance

Egypt’s Ministry of Finance announced Thursday that it has selected global specialist law firm Dechert LLP to act as legal adviser for the country’s plan to issue international bonds.

Dechert LLP is an international law firm of more than 900 lawyers with top-ranked practices in corporate and securities, complex litigation, finance, and real estate, and financial services, and asset management.

Egypt aims to issue $3 billion to $5 billion in Eurobonds in the current financial year ending June 30. The government plans to approach international markets in September or October, to ease the pressure on domestic financing resources. The domestic debt increased to 83 percent of the gross domestic product, and the high interest prices on the domestic borrowing rates range from 14 percent for short-term tools to 17 percent in long-term tools.

The first issuance is planned for October, Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said last week. The government last sold Eurobonds in 2015, raising $1.5 billion. Since then, officials have postponed sales as Egypt’s borrowing costs soared.