Malta Government Stocks
Funding and Issuance
As announced in the indicative calendar issued on 8th January 2015, the amount of issuance of Malta Government Stock (MGS) for the financial year 2015 was set not to exceed Eur 500 million. So far this year the Treasury raised 33.65% of the overall annual issuance, leaving a balance of not more than Eur 331 million.
It is planned that the Treasury completes the financing programme for the year 2015 over two or three more issues. The next MGS issuance is planned to be launched in June 2015. The issue shall be open for subscription through the auction process and settlement shall be on a T+2 basis as announced in the indicative calendar issued on 8th January 2015.
The maturity structure of the MGS to be offered will be a mix of the 5 to 10 year and over 14- year maturity buckets. The Treasury will continue to adopt a degree of flexibility to adapt quickly to changing market conditions and where necessary, review and re-arrange the amount that will be allocated for each issue as well as the intervals of issuances.
The exact maturity and details on whether the offer will be for a new stock or a re-opening of an existing MGS will be announced one to two weeks prior to each offer.
MGS Switch auctions
The Treasury shall be holding consultations with the main market players and key stakeholders with a view to re-launching a voluntary MGS switch transaction via the auction mechanism.
T+2 settlement cycle in the primary market for all Government Securities
After concluding the consultation exercise with main stakeholders, in March 2015 the Treasury announced to the market that the settlement period for Treasury bills in the primary market shall move from T+3 to a T+2 settlement cycle with effect from 1st October 2015. In this regard, the standard weekly auctions shall continue to be held on Tuesdays, whilst with effect from 1st October 2015, settlement is being brought forward from Fridays to Thursdays.
Treasury Bills
The frequency of issuance and maturity of T-Bills as announced in the Indicative Issuance Calendar of January 2015 will be maintained.