Norton Rose Fulbright advises African Development Bank Group on US$600 million sovereign debt conversion for Zambia

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright advised the African Development Bank Group on a US$600 million sovereign financing to the Republic of Zambia with risk participation from the African Development Fund. The first-of-its-kind financing supported a liability management transaction to repurchase approximately US$1.36 billion of outstanding sovereign debt while also providing funding for Zambia's grid resilience program. The deal closed on June 9, 2026.

The financing was part of a broader transaction in which Zambia used the funding from African Development Bank Group, along with its own resources, to repurchase a sovereign Eurobond at a substantial discount. The deal will reduce debt service costs over the term of the loan, with US$275 million of the savings allocated to rehabilitate and expand Zambia's electricity distribution systems.

"This innovative transaction reflects the increasingly sophisticated financing solutions being used to support sovereign debt management and development priorities," said Kenneth Hansen, who led Norton Rose Fulbright's representation. "We were pleased to assist the African Development Bank Group on a matter that is expected to strengthen Zambia's financial position while advancing important energy-sector investments."

Norton Rose Fulbright's deal team was led by Kenneth Hansen and included Ugo Uche-Anya (Washington, DC). The firm's projects practice is one of the largest of its kind with more than 350 lawyers across 50 offices acting on some of the world's most innovative, complex and challenging projects. Norton Rose Fulbright was ranked as a top four global project finance legal advisor by volume for 2025, with deals valued at more than US$90 billion in aggregate (IJGlobal Q1, 2026).