BTr says retail Treasury bond auction set for Tuesday

The Philippine government is set to auction Tuesday five- and 10-year retail Treasury bonds worth P20 billion, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said over the weekend. The BTr said it will also sell retail Treasury bonds worth P10 billion after the auction on Tuesday until Mar. 1. National Treasurer Roberto Tan said the proceeds from these bonds will be used to refinance maturing debts. He said the bureau is willing to increase the number of bonds offered to investors should the demand goes strong. Market sources are expecting demand for the bonds to reach P50 billion to P70 billion. Over the past two years, the government has sold at least P200 billion worth of retail Treasury bonds. Land Bank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines are expected to oversee the debt sale. Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. has joined the consortium of banks that will handle the debt sale. After the latest offer this year, the government may sell bonds later this year, Tan said. According to him, the government is still studying the market to assess how often the retail Treasury bonds may be offered. Tan pointed out that the BTr wants to have a regular debt sale. Last year, the BTr twice issued retail Treasury bonds. In April, it sold $500 million worth of fixed rate multicurrency retail Treasury bonds or overseas Filipino workers' bonds. In August, it sold P97 billion worth of five-, seven-, and 10-year RTBs. The issuance of retail Treasury bonds is part of the government's savings mobilization program designed to make government securities available to retail investors and create savings consciousness among Filipinos. The government said retail Treasury bonds give Filipinos the opportunity to invest in government securities even with a small amount of cash. — JE, GMA News