Sri Lanka, May 22 -- Statement on Sri Lanka Defaulting on Foreign Debt Payments by Eran Wickramaratne M.P., Former State Minister of Finance
On 12 April 2022, Sri Lanka suspended repayment on most of the government's external foreign currency debt, including the International Sovereign Bonds (ISBs) and bilateral debt. With the end of the 30-days grace period since the ISB coupon payments due on 18 April 2022, Fitch and Standard & Poor credit rating agencies have moved Sri Lanka to Selective or Restricted Default (SD/RD) rating, officially signalling that for the first time in history Sri Lanka has defaulted on its external debt.
As the State Minister of Finance under the previous administration, we had identified that Sri Lanka's economy ...