Mobile-phone bond on sale

KENYA began selling its first mobile-phone-based government bond yesterday, part of an ambitious plan to broaden the pool of investors in government securities. The government is initially making a limited offer of 150 million shillings (R18.07m) to test the system before a bigger offer in June, finance minister Henry Rotich said. Governor Patrick Njoroge said the bond, called M-Akiba, allows people to invest as little as 3 000 Kenyan shillings. “This is a product that will dramatically improve the savings culture of our people,” he said. Treasuries in other emerging economies will be watching with interest. Most would like to broaden their sources of borrowing beyond local banks and international financial institutions. Kenya pioneered the use of mobile money in 2007 with M-Pesa, a money transfer service, by telecoms operator Safaricom. – Reuters