(Bloomberg) -- Bulgaria sold a total of $4.8 billion in dollar and euro bonds, the country’s biggest ever foreign-debt sale, as it seeks to finance its budget deficit amid a protracted political crisis.
The Balkan country sold €1.75 billion ($1.94 billion) in eight-year euro bonds, €1.25 billion in 20-year notes and $1.5 billion in long 12-year dollar debt. BNP Paribas SA, Citigroup Inc., ING Groep NV and UniCredit SpA ran the three-part deal.
Bulgaria is preparing for an early election in October, its seventh ballot in three and a half years, as political parties have repeatedly failed to form a stable majority government. The interim cabinet, appointed Tuesday, needs funds to help finance its budget deficit and pay back a €1.5 billion note maturing next week.
“The results of the issue show the confidence of the foreign markets in the predictable financial and economic policy of Bulgaria is preserved, regardless of the dynamic domestic political environment,” Finance Minister Lyudmila Petkova said in a statement Thursday.
With the European Union’s lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the first quarter and a history of fiscal discipline, Bulgaria is working to adopt the euro next year. Its plans have been hindered by the political crisis and high inflation, but praised by investors.
The eight-year euro-denominated securities were priced at 135 basis points over mid-swaps, with books reaching €6.6 billion, according to the Finance Ministry. The 20-year bonds were priced at 190 basis points over mid-swaps, and the long 12-year dollar securities at 135 basis points over Treasuries, with demand at $6.8 billion.
The government has already sold 1.7 billion lev ($963 million) on the domestic market, with new auctions for 1.15 billion lev planned in the next three months. No more more international debt sales are planned for this year, the ministry said in the statement.
(Updates with comments from the Finance Ministry starting in fourth paragraph.)
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