US funds commit Rs. 43 b for 2008

Asia Capital, Central Bank end successful road show:

Ravi Ladduwahetty

United States based Funds have pledged a whopping US$ 400 million (around Rs. 43 billion) into Sri Lankan Government Securities before end 2008.

The assurance has been given to Asia Capital Ltd by its US partner Auerbach Grayson and Co. LLC of New York which has direct access to major United States based funds who have pledged the funds before end 2008, Asia Capital 's Head of Treasury Nandi Anthony told Daily News Business.

Among these large number of American funds, have been Goldman Sachs, Fidelity, All Bright Capital, NWI, Invesco and Loomis.

This assurance is a sequel to the road show attended by a two member delegation each from Asia Capital and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka at the beginning of this month jointly organised with their US partner Auerbach Grayson.

"Given the relatively low level of rates and the rate cuts, currently prevalent in USA and the current stability of the rupee against the dollar, investment in Sri Lankan bills and bonds provide prospective US investors with an investment option that would yield far greater returns," Anthony said.

The Asia Capital delegates at the road show were Managing Director/CEO Asanga Seneviratne and Head of Treasury Nandi Anthony.

The Central Bank delegates were former Superintendent of Public Debt Dharma Dheerasekera who is now seconded to the International Monetary Fund as Assistant Governor of the Central Bank and the incumbent Superintendent of Public Debt C.P.J. Siriwardena.

Anthony said these fund managers, who had earlier invested in the Sri Lankan equities market and in dollar denominated sovereign bonds through Asia Capital and Asia Securities, showed a high level of knowledge about the Sri Lankan economy and capital market and in particular posed questions mainly focusing on key areas such as inflation, rupee depreciation against the dollar, trade deficit, ethnic war and political stability.

The Sri Lankan team was able to effectively field these questions based on the road map set out by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

These road shows coincided with the Sri Lankan government's decision to liberalise treasury bill investments to foreigners.

Subsequent to this road show, foreign funds have invested over rupees one billion in Treasury Bills, within a space of ten working days as reported in the Daily News Business story of May 26.