RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund has initiated plans to issue sterling-denominated bonds, according to Arab News sources. The sovereign wealth fund has mandated Barclays, BNP Paribas, HSBC, and JPMorgan to act as joint global coordinators to arrange meetings with investors starting June 3. According to the sources, investor calls will be followed by a sale subject to market conditions. This would be the first sterling-denominated offering by Saudi entities since 2020 and reportedly only the second ever. The fund aims to issue two tranches of sterling-denominated bonds with five-year and 15-year maturity dates. With approximately $1 trillion in assets under management, the PIF plans to increase its capital deployment to $70 billion a year after 2025, up from the current $40 billion to $50 billion. The fund raised $5 billion through the sale of a triple-tranche conventional bond in January and $3.5 billion from a sukuk deal in October 2023. Furthermore, the PIF also commenced the sale of US dollar-denominated sukuk with priority payment for a seven-year term. The initial indicative price for the bond sale has been reportedly set at a premium of around 115 basis points above US Treasury bonds. The Kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund has appointed Goldman Sachs, HSBC, and Standard Chartered to arrange meetings with potential investors. The sovereign fund is also spearheading sustainable efforts in the Gulf Cooperation Council region, as it raised $8.5 billion in green bond proceeds in 2023, according to Moody’s Investors Service.