Infra lender NaBFID considers bond sale to raise up to $4.8 billion

By Saikat Das
 

National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development plans to raise up to Rs 40,000 crore ($4.8 billion) in local currency bonds, according to people familiar with the matter, as the newly created Indian lender aims to more than double its loans disbursement. 

NaBFID, as the institution is called, is likely to sell bonds with tenors spanning from 10 to 20 years in the financial year starting April 1, the people said, asking not be identified because the details are private. The amount is expected to be in Rs 30,000 crore to Rs 40,000 crore range, they said.

The state-backed financier, which started operations in 2022, raised Rs 19,520 crore in the current fiscal year in two issuances, joining other Indian institutions in selling bonds amid a massive increase in government spending on roads, ports and railways. NaBFID has disbursed loans of more than Rs 25,000 crore since April last year, one of the people said.

NaBFID didn’t immediately reply to Bloomberg’s emailed request for comment on the fundraising proposal. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration has doubled spending on roads, airports and urban infrastructure over the past three years, and allocated about Rs11 trillion ($133 billion) to the sector for the coming fiscal year.