(Yicai) July 22 -- The CNY2 billion (USD278.8 million) of so-called panda bonds recently issued by the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank were more than three times oversubscribed, setting a new record for the infrastructure project lender.

The two-year panda bonds -- yuan-denominated notes sold by foreign issuers in the Chinese mainland -- carry a coupon rate of 1.64 percent, the Beijing-based AIIB announced yesterday. They were oversubscribed by 3.2 times, reflecting strong investor confidence, it said.

The bonds were priced just seven basis points above comparable‑maturity notes sold by China Development Bank, a state policy bank, the narrowest spread in the three years that the AIIB has been issuing such bonds.

The AIIB has sold seven panda bonds in the interbank market to date, raising a combined CNY16.5 billion (USD2.3 billion) since 2020.

More than 30 institutions bought the bonds sold on July 10, including 12 first‑time investors. Fund management desks at Chinese and foreign banks were the main buyers, accounting for 88 percent, the AIIB noted, adding that the share bought by Chinese and foreign central banks and official institutions topped 10.5 percent, with the rest bought by asset managers and insurers.

Overseas investors acquired 58 percent of the bonds, while onshore investors accounted for 43 percent. Overseas banks were the largest single group at 47 percent, followed by foreign banks operating in China at 27 percent, state‑owned and joint‑stock commercial banks at 10 percent, and urban and rural lenders at 4 percent.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev