Credit Suisse buys Ecuador bonds for Galapagos conservation
Credit Suisse announced the purchase of Ecuadorian bonds worth US$1.6 billion (€1.45 billion) in a debt-for-nature swap that cost the Swiss bank just US$644 million.
With Ecuador in serious financial peril, the bonds were trading well below face value as investors considered default likely. Effectively, Ecuador has already bought back its own debt at a ridiculous price through a new loan from Credit Suisse.
And in return, Ecuador’s government has pledged to spend about $18 million a year for two decades on conservation in the Galápagos Islands.
The remote islands – home to some of the most pristine wilderness in the world – are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and their animal life was crucial to Charles Darwin’s research before he published his theory of evolution.
Source: DW
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