A backlash against governments using derivatives to borrow against their debt is gathering strength, after the IMF cracked down on a multibillion-dollar loan to Nigeria as risky and opaque.
The $5bn credit line, arranged through a “total return swap” between Nigeria and First Abu Dhabi Bank, has raised concerns at the fund and among rating agencies and investors about developing countries using these opaque mechanisms to take on new forms of debt.
They say the deals leave borrowers exposed to risks that are hidden from other lenders and conceal the true extent of their debt obligations. The Nigerian deal has become a lightning rod for such warnings after years of effort to make emerging market sovereign borrowing more transparent.