Bosnian region aims to raise $81.5 million via debt auctions

Bosnia's autonomous Bosniak-Croat Federation aims to raise 150 million Bosnian marka ($81.5 million) this month via two bond auctions and one T-bill sale to help plug a budget gap, the finance ministry said.
The Federation will issue five-year bonds worth 60 million marka on December 20 and three-year bonds worth 40 million on December 27, the ministry said in a filing on the Sarajevo Stock Exchange.
It will issue six-month treasury bills worth 50 million marka on December 22. The Federation's last auction of treasury bills earlier this month fell short of its target.
Bosnia's two regions, the Federation and the Serb Republic, also need cash to finance maturing debt.
In September, the IMF approved a 553 million-euro ($593 million) loan programme to support economic reforms in the impoverished Balkan state.
The lender has already disbursed 79.2 million euros. But in order to access the next instalment of about 80 million euros, Bosnia must pass a law raising excise taxes while the regions must adopt new banking laws.