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| Republic of Indonesia | |
| Value | $2.5 billion 10-year bond |
| Bookrunners | Deutsche, JPMorgan, UBS |
| return to the Asian Deals of the Year index | |
If much of the world lacked bright moments in 2011, you could at least find them in Asia – and nowhere more so than in Indonesia.
The worst laggard of the Asian financial crisis is a country transformed, which is nothing new to foreign investors: by August, they held 36% of all rupiah government bonds in the country before a brief but manageable pullback later in the year. Indonesia’s numbers – whether foreign exchange reserves, GDP growth, net external debt or contribution of domestic demand – provided a compelling case for an upgrade to investment-grade status all year, and in December Fitch became the first of the rating agencies to give that vital and symbolic boost. The other two agencies are expected to follow.
A large part of Indonesia’s success was through its masterful use of the international capital markets. This included an impressive sukuk deal as well as conventional issues, but the standout was a $2.5
