Angola gets $500m boost as JPMorgan extends debt facility

Angola has secured an additional $500 million in financing after extending an existing $1 billion debt facility with JPMorgan for a further three years, the country’s finance ministry said on Tuesday.

The extension comes as Africa’s second biggest oil producer seeks to balance external financing needs with tighter debt-management discipline amid volatile global capital flows and shifting investor appetite for emerging and frontier market assets.

Under the revised agreement, the facility now carries an interest rate below 8 percent, replacing a one-year structure agreed with the Wall Street bank in 2024. The original deal was executed through a total return swap (TRS), a derivative structure that allows Angola to access funding while pledging sovereign bonds as collateral.

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Under that initial arrangement, JPMorgan provided financing backed by about $1.9 billion of Angolan sovereign bonds, giving the government access to liquidity while limiting immediate exposure to conventional debt markets.

Angolan bonds rallied on news of the extension, with the 2048 maturity trading about one cent higher at 86.97 cents on the dollar, reflecting improved investor sentiment after a volatile start to the year.

In April, however, the risks embedded in the structure were laid bare when JPMorgan issued a $200 million margin call, triggered by a sharp fall in Angolan bond prices amid global market turbulence sparked by sweeping U.S. trade tariffs. The government later recovered the additional collateral as bond prices rebounded, easing pressure on the facility and restoring its original balance.

The episode underscored both the flexibility and vulnerabilities of derivative-based financing for frontier market borrowers, particularly during periods of global stress.

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By extending the facility and increasing available funding, Angola is securing longer-term financial breathing room while avoiding an immediate return to the international bond market. The move also signals renewed confidence from JPMorgan following the recovery in the country’s sovereign debt prices.

I hold a degree in Economics from the University of Lagos and have over eight years of experience in content writing and journalism.

My career spans roles as a financial and business journalist at BusinessDay Media and TechCabal, and as Head of Research at SBM Intelligence, an Africa-focused market intelligence and strategic consulting firm.

I also served as Editor at Finance in Africa, a subsidiary of Businessfront. I am currently Assistant Editor, Finance (Africa), at BusinessDay.

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