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Cyprus’s government decided to buy back up to €258.5m of outstanding domestic government securities maturing between April 20, 2020 and July 1, 2021, the finance ministry said.

“The Public Debt Management Office announces that it accepts bids from security holders for a complete or partial buyback by the government,” the PDMO, a division of the finance ministry, said in an emailed statement on Tuesday.

The offer applies to the bonds with the serial number CY0049570811, CY0049630813, CY0143830814 and CY0143790810, the PDMO said. All securities, which carry an annual interest rate ranging from 4.75 per cent to 6.1 per cent are traded at the Cyprus Stock Exchange. Two of the bonds were issued in 2005 while the rest in 2013.

The deadline for applications is September 6, while the buybacks will become effective three days later, the PDMO said. The government is facing debt maturities totalling almost €4bn in 2019 and 2020, which account for almost one quarter of the economy.

The Cyprus Business Mail understands that the government is currently focusing on buying back domestically traded bonds because of the simpler procedures compared to buying back internationally traded bonds and the higher interest rates domestic bonds carry.

On Wednesday, roughly a month after the government issued a €1bn 7-year bond, the PDMO said that it decided to deposit €430m at Cypriot banks after receiving bids..

By Stelios Orphanides