{"id":20411,"date":"2022-04-12T19:57:48","date_gmt":"2022-04-12T19:57:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt"},"modified":"2022-04-12T20:19:11","modified_gmt":"2022-04-12T20:19:11","slug":"blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt","title":{"rendered":"BlackRock accused of planning to make super profits on Zambia\u2019s debt"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zambia. <\/strong><\/span>BlackRock, the world\u2019s largest fund manager, has come under pressure to delay demands for debt interest payments from Zambia to prevent the country\u2019s finances from spiralling out of control.<\/p>\n

Anti-poverty campaigners said BlackRock, which manages $10tn of assets, was among the private sector lenders that had refused to reduce the interest rate or delay payments on Zambian bonds, unlike governments and international agencies that hold the country\u2019s debts.<\/p>\n

The charity Jubilee Debt Campaign said it estimated BlackRock, which holds $220m of Zambian sovereign bonds, mostly on behalf of clients in its index-linked exchange-traded funds, could generate a $180m profit if the debts were paid in full.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis would represent a 110% profit on what we estimate BlackRock paid for the debt,\u201d the charity said.<\/p>\n

Zambia, which has cut health and social care spending by a fifth in the past two years to balance its budget, has seen its debts soar in recent years to fund infrastructure projects, many to help the country supplement drought-affected hydropower plants.<\/p>\n

Solar energy projects have made the country almost self-sufficient in electricity, but the high cost of borrowing and the Covid crisis has crippled the country\u2019s finances.<\/p>\n

Further loans from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have been tied to commitments to end fuel subsidies to households and businesses, pushing the inflation rate above 20% last year.<\/p>\n

Of Zambia\u2019s external debt, 46% is owed to private lenders, 22% to China, 8% to other governments and 18% to multilateral institutions. China is among the government lenders to agree a longer debt repayment schedule that private lenders, including banks, have so far resisted, the Jubilee Debt campaign said.<\/p>\n

The Zambian government has already defaulted on loans from commercial lenders and could default on further loans, risking it becoming a pariah on international debt markets.<\/p>\n

Since the start of the pandemic in early 2020, the charity estimates Zambia\u2019s bonds have had an average face value of 59 cents on the dollar, and the average interest rate on its bonds is 8.1%.<\/p>\n

Zambia applied for a new G20 debt relief scheme at the start of 2021 but has not yet had any debt cancelled. Tim Jones, the Jubilee Debt Campaign\u2019s head of policy, said BlackRock had bought Zambian bonds at rock-bottom prices when it was clear the country was already in trouble.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cIt is unfair for BlackRock and other lenders to make massive profits out of Zambia\u2019s debt crisis. If BlackRock refuses to cancel Zambia\u2019s debt, then the UK and other G20 countries should support Zambia to stay in default on BlackRock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Isaac Mwaipopo, a member of the Zambia Civil Society Debt Alliance, said: \u201cZambia\u2019s debt crisis is preventing people getting access to healthcare, education and other social services.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe urgently need all of Zambia\u2019s lenders, including BlackRock, to agree to cancel debt so we can recover from the Covid pandemic and the economic crisis we face. Loans were given at high interest rates, and have been trading at low prices, so it is only fair lenders agree significant debt cancellation, rather than making mass profit out of the Zambian people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Negotiations on the debt restructuring are due to take place later this month. G20 finance ministers are scheduled to meet on 20 April, during the IMF spring meetings, to discuss the progress of the debt relief scheme, known as the common framework.<\/p>\n

Zambia, Chad and Ethiopia applied last year for debt relief under the common framework, which the IMF said has yet to be agreed, partly because it requires private creditors to participate \u201con comparable terms to overcome collective action challenges and ensure fair burden sharing\u201d.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Zambia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zambia. BlackRock, the world\u2019s largest fund manager, has come under pressure to delay demands for debt interest payments from Zambia to prevent the country\u2019s finances from spiralling out of control. Anti-poverty campaigners said BlackRock, which manages $10tn of assets, was among the private sector lenders that had refused to reduce the interest rate […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":20409,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,7,8,12,16],"tags":[234,235,233],"class_list":["post-20411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-head-lines","category-homepage-english","category-policy","category-twitter","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-zambia","tag-zambia"],"yoast_head":"\nBlackRock accused of planning to make super profits on Zambia\u2019s debt - Zambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"BlackRock, the world\u2019s largest fund manager, has come under pressure to delay demands for debt interest payments from Za ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BlackRock accused of planning to make super profits on Zambia\u2019s debt\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"BlackRock, the world\u2019s largest fund manager, has come under pressure to delay demands for debt interest payments from Za ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Zambia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-04-12T19:57:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-04-12T20:19:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2022\/04\/img-6255de88a2d44.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"533\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"BlackRock accused of planning to make super profits on Zambia\u2019s debt\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-04-12T19:57:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-04-12T20:19:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt\"},\"wordCount\":623,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zambia\/sites\/35\/2022\/04\/img-6255de88a2d44.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Zambia\",\"Zambia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"head lines\",\"homepage-english\",\"policy\",\"twitter\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zambia\/all-news\/blackrock-accused-of-planning-to-make-super-profits-on-zambias-debt\",\"name\":\"BlackRock accused of planning to make super profits on Zambia\u2019s debt - 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