Global law firm Hogan Lovells advised the Government of The Bahamas in the closing of a debt conversion transaction that refinanced US$300 million of The Bahamas’ external commercial debt. Debt service cost savings from the transaction will facilitate improved ocean conservation and management of the country’s Marine Protected Areas to benefit biodiversity and people, and to lessen the effects of climate change.
The transaction was undertaken in partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and several financial partners, and will unlock an expected US$124 million of new cash funding (plus an additional estimated US$8 million of endowment investment returns) for marine conservation by The Bahamas over the next 15 years without adding to the country’s debt.
The Bahamas has a strong record in marine conservation, with more than 17% of its nearshore environment designated as part of its National Protected Areas System.
The Hogan Lovells deal team was led by partners Gordon Wilson (Banking, Washington, D.C.), Tifarah Allen (Capital Markets, Washington, D.C.), senior counsel Eve Howard (Capital Markets, Washington, D.C.), senior associates Ao Chen (Banking, New York), Katherine Tyurin (Capital Markets, New York), and associate Lucia Cadavid Arango (Banking, New York).
