Africa Finance Corporation raised 350 million Swiss francs ($430 million) through a five-year digital bond, giving investors another way to back infrastructure across the continent.
The deal is the first by an African institution to be listed, traded, and settled on a regulated digital exchange. The bond will be deposited with a blockchain-based settlement system run by Switzerland’s main stock exchange operator.
The proceeds will support AFC’s broader funding needs and infrastructure financing. AFC’s deal comes at a time when African institutions are looking to expand capital solutions to fill the continent’s infrastructure gap.
Interest in digital bonds is accelerating elsewhere too: Last month the UK said it aims to issue its first digital sovereign bond by early next year.