NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Economic Affairs Minister Senator Michael Halkitis has praised the hiring of the independent global financial advisory group Rothschild & Co as “money well spent,” evidenced by the “tens of millions of dollars” improvement in the levels at which government bonds are trading on the international market.
During a weekly press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister, previewing Wednesday’s budget presentation, Halkitis noted that the engagement with Rothschild & Co will likely be extended by another year. The firm, which has some 3,800 employees spread across 40 countries, has helped the government in its engagement with investors over the past few years.
He explained: “Back in 2021, Bahamians became rightly concerned about the high levels of government debt. The debt-to-GDP ratio was a little over 100 percent. This administration promised to address the debt issue. We established a debt management office within the Ministry of Finance, giving that office the resources they needed to analyze the government debt and how much we have outstanding. We also formed a private sector debt advisory committee, including Rothschild, to assist in our outreach and engagement with international investors. Rothschild has been helping us in our engagement with investors over the past few years. About a year to 18 months ago, there was a lot of commentary on the price of the government debt trading at distressed levels, with suggestions that we were in danger of default. We felt at the time that those prices did not reflect what was truly happening in the economy.”
He added: “We will probably extend Rothschild for another year or so. The job is never really done, but we have made a lot of progress and are very pleased with the work they have done. They have a global presence, and we are very happy with the work they have done. We see this in the levels at which our international bonds are trading.”
“I think the savings have been phenomenal,” said Senator Halkitis. “We’re talking about tens of millions of dollars in terms of the improvement in how our debt is trading. I think it is well worth it. I think it is money well spent, no doubt about it. As we move through this calendar year, we will continue to see the impact of their advice.”
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