South Africa bonds

South Africa is the southernmost country in Africa. It has 3 capital cities: executive Pretoria, judicial Bloemfontein, and legislative Cape Town. The economy of the most southern country of the African continent remains one of the most competitive in the region mainly based on private enterprise. Key sectors are manufacturing, retail, financial services, agriculture, and tourism.

The South African debt market is liquid and well-developed. It is represented by government, municipal and corporate securities.

Government securities consist of Republic of South Africa (RSA) Government Bonds and RSA Retail Savings Bonds. RSA bonds are issued by the Government of South Africa via the National Treasury to finance the total Budget deficit during a fiscal year. RSA Bonds, as issued by the Asset and Liability Management division of the National Treasury, are interest-bearing bonds. The bonds are listed on the Bond Exchange of South Africa. The National Treasury also issues Vanilla Bonds, Variable Bonds, CPI Bonds, and Zero Coupon bonds. An RSA Retail Savings Bond is an investment with the Government of South Africa which earns fixed or inflation-linked interest for the term of the investment. RSA Retail Savings Bonds are available as Fixed Rate Retail Savings Bonds (with a 2-year, 3-year, and 5-year maturity) and as Inflation Linked Retail Savings Bonds (with a 3-year, 5-year, and 10-year maturity).

Municipal Bonds are issued by city councils for development projects with tenors typically longer than one year. Municipal bond issues are not guaranteed by the central Government.

The corporate bond market of South Africa is dominated by the floating rate instruments – they amount to more than 71% of the outstanding securities. The corporate bond market of South Africa includes Fixed Rate Bonds, Inflation Linked Instruments, Commercial Paper, Credit Linked Notes, Asset-Backed Securities, Mortgage-Backed Securities, and Green Bonds.