From Bloomberg

Nigeria may more than double the size of a planned $100 million diaspora bond to tap demand from nationals living outside the continent’s most populous nation to fund projects back home.

The Debt Management Office is set to ask lawmakers within two to three weeks for a possible increase to between $200 million and $250 million, Director General Abraham Nwankwo said in an interview on Jan. 15 in the capital, Abuja. The amount will be set before June, he said.

“There are possibilities that we could go for more,” Nwankwo said. “The market is telling us, ‘look why are you just going for $100 million since it’s diaspora focused? Suppose they want to invest more in the Nigerian economy, won’t you frustrate them?’”

The government of Africa’s biggest oil producer returned to international debt markets for the first time in two years in July, issuing $1 billion in Eurobonds to fund power projects in an economy set to grow 6.7 percent this year, according to the World Bank. When the diaspora bond was announced in August, the debt agency said the funds would be used to finance capital projects.

Written by Chris Kay | Read more at Bloomberg