The Maldives has completed repayment of USD 150 million in budget-support financing raised through Treasury bills subscribed by the State Bank of India (SBI) during the previous administration, the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises said on Thursday.
The final USD 50 million payment was settled on September 17, bringing the outstanding amount under the facility to zero.
The financing dates back to 2019, when the government under former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih issued three USD 50 million Treasury bills to SBI as budget support.
The instruments were subsequently rolled over on several occasions with support from the Indian government. Unlike a conventional loan, the arrangement involved SBI subscribing to Maldivian government Treasury bills, with India facilitating the budgetary support.
President Dr Mohamed Muizzu’s administration repaid the first USD 50 million T-bill in January 2024.
A second USD 50 million payment was made on May 11, 2026, while the remaining USD 50 million fell due on September 17. With Thursday’s payment, the full USD 150 million liability has now been settled.
The repayment comes at a time when the Maldives is managing significant external debt obligations alongside pressure on its foreign exchange reserves.
Latest data from the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) show that official reserve assets stood at USD 643.8 million at the end of August 2026, up 0.9 percent from USD 638 million in July, but 20.5 percent lower than a year earlier.
The Finance Ministry said arrangements remain in place to ensure foreign currency is available for essential imports, including fuel, food and medicines. The statement came amid concerns over whether large external debt repayments could put additional pressure on the country’s reserves.
Former President Mohamed Nasheed had raised concerns ahead of the payment, arguing that settling the final USD 50 million could significantly reduce usable reserves and affect the availability of foreign currency for essential imports.
The Finance Ministry rejected such concerns, describing claims that debt repayments would disrupt the import of essential goods as unfounded. It said the government was continuing to make provisions for debt servicing through the Sovereign Development Fund while maintaining arrangements to meet essential foreign currency requirements.
The government has said strengthening official reserves, meeting external debt obligations and maintaining access to foreign currency for essential imports remain among its key fiscal priorities.
The latest repayment also closes one of the long-running budget-support arrangements between the Maldives and India, under which SBI had subscribed to Maldivian Treasury bills since 2019 and India had agreed to several extensions of repayment deadlines over subsequent years.
