Asia Roundup
Kazakhstan SWF Closes Order Book for Debut Panda Bond
Kazakhstan sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna has closed the order book for its debut panda bond at a record-low yield of 2.18%, according to its LinkedIn post.
The panda bond issuance totalled CNY 3 billion (USD 439.1 million), with a three-year tenor in China’s domestic debt market. “The placement is being carried out under a registered program of up to CNY 10 billion, ensuring the Fund’s continued presence in the Chinese capital market,” Samruk-Kazyna said.
Uzbekistan Wealth Fund Confirms Plan for London IPO
Uzbekistan’s national wealth fund has confirmed plans to plough ahead with a London initial public offering, City AM reported.
In an update to the stock exchange, the National Investment Fund of the Republic of Uzbekistan (UzNIF) announced it expected to float on both the London and Tashkent stock exchanges.
Vingroup Signs Pact with India’s Maharashtra to Explore $6.5 Billion Investments
Vietnam’s largest conglomerate Vingroup signed a memorandum of understanding with Maharashtra’s state government to explore USD 6.5 billion in investments, Reuters reported via CNA.
The move will deepen Vingroup’s footprint in India, where its electric vehicle unit VinFast operates a manufacturing facility in the state of Tamil Nadu.
Indonesia Roundup
Indonesia’s Finance Minister Calls World Bank GDP Growth Downgrade a ‘Serious Mistake’
Indonesia’s Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has pushed back against the World Bank’s decision to lower the country’s 2026 economic growth forecast from 4.8% to 4.7%, calling it a “serious mistake” that could undermine market and investor confidence in the country, local media reported via CNA.
Purbaya attributed the lower forecast partly to assumptions of high global oil prices, saying that such conditions will not last long and that projections will improve as energy prices normalise.
“The World Bank has created a negative sentiment about us. I’ll wait for their apology when oil prices return to normal levels and they revise their economic projections again,” Purbaya said, as quoted by news outlet Kompas.
Indonesia’s Prabowo Calls for Criminal Charges Against Firms Resisting Forest Crackdown
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto ordered prosecutors to file criminal charges against companies that refuse to cooperate with a task force he launched to crack down on illegal activities in the country’s forests, Reuters reported via The Straits Times.
The task force, made up of military personnel, prosecutors and environmental regulators, has since early 2025 been seizing areas controlled by companies and individuals, ordering them to pay fines for what they describe as illegal business operations in designated forest areas.
Indonesia’s Richest Man Sells Stakes as Ownership Rules Tighten
Indonesia’s richest man has begun selling small stakes in his listed companies as tighter ownership rules push firms to increase shares available to public investors, Bloomberg reported.
Billionaire Prajogo Pangestu sold a 0.56% stake in Petrindo Jaya Kreasi to boost the company’s free float, according to a stock exchange filing. Pangestu-affiliated Green Era Energy this week also sold a fraction of its stake in Barito Renewables Energy.
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