Government signs Sh82.3 billion loan deal with four banks

Government has signed an $800 million (Sh82.3b) syndicated loan deal with four banks last Thursday, a market source said on Monday, ending weeks of delays.

The government picked Standard Chartered, Standard Bank, Citi and Rand Merchant Bank to lead the loan back in January.

"The deal was signed last Thursday. They are now waiting for the drawdown," said the source, who did not wish to be identified.

The terms of the loan were not immediately known.

The East African nation said it would raise 150 billion shillings ($1.46 billion) from external commercial sources, partly to plug a fiscal deficit equal to 9.7 percent of gross domestic product in its budget for the fiscal year to June 2017.