Bank of China offers Sri Lanka $300m loan, option to raise to $1b

Bank of China (BOC) has offered a loan of $300 million (232.68 million pounds) to Sri Lanka which can be raised to $1 billion, a source in Colombo with direct knowledge of the matter, said.

The source told Reuters on Tuesday that Sri Lankan government is considering the offer because of “difficulty in borrowing money after recent ratings downgrades.”

Reuters could not immediately reach Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Finance and the Bank of China.

Sri Lanka, an island nation off India’s southeastern coast, is struggling to repay its foreign loans, with a record $5.9 billion due this year including $2.6 billion in the first three months alone.