KDB raises 53.7 bln yen in Samurai bonds

South Korea's state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) said Wednesday it has raised 53.7 billion yen (US$700.6 million) by selling Japanese-currency denominated bonds despite the current global market turmoil. The lender said it has sold four tranches of so-called Samurai bonds with lower-than-expected costs even as global investors were wary of snapping up longer-term bonds amid high market volatility. A Samurai bond is a yen-denominated bond floated in Japan by non-Japanese firms. The bank said it has sold 47 billion yen worth of bonds which mature in one year with an interest rate of 1.3 percent. It has issued 3.7 billion yen of two-year notes with a rate of 1.45 percent and 600 million yen of three-year debt with an interest rate of 1.57 percent. The remainder, which matures in five years, carries a rate of 1.91 percent. KDB said the proceeds of the debt sale will be used to repay maturing debt and to extend foreign currency-denominated loans.