The Strategist

Mozambique to pay $220m to VTB Capital and BCP to settle tuna bonds scandal



07/03/2024 - 05:39



Banco Comercial Portugueses (BCP), VTB Capital plc, and OWH SE (former VTB Bank Europe) have settled their claims against Mozambique with a $220 million payment in the infamous "tuna bonds scandal".



The Attorney General's Office and the Ministry of Economy and Finance of Mozambique jointly released a statement stating that the parties had reached a pre-trial settlement that permitted the country to lower the payback obligations.

The creditors' demands totaled $1.4 billion after interest was added.

The parties are released from one other's claims in full according to the agreement.

The Mozambican government struck a similar agreement with Credit Suisse and other creditors in 2023.

The agreement should bring an end to a legal dispute that started ten years ago when foreign banks gave Mozambique loans of roughly $2 billion for projects that included the construction of a fleet for tuna fishing and processing, as well as a system to monitor and defend its coastline against piracy and illegal fishing.

source: reuters.com