Brazilian Finance Minister Dario Durigan announced on June 25 in Beijing that his government will issue up to five billion yuan (~$735 million) in “Panda bonds,” the name given to renimbi-denominated bonds issued by foreign governments and companies in the Chinese domestic market. “We are ready to come to China and offer our sovereign bonds from Brazil in the Chinese market, as a sign of confidence and as a sign that we should work together if we want to improve the life of our people,” Durigan said at the ceremony held between Chinese and Brazilian officials to announce the decision, China Daily reported. For his part, Pan Gongsheng, Governor of the People’s Bank of China, said there that the PBC believes this step will create more opportunities for bilateral cooperation.
Durigan told Reuters after the ceremony that this issuance is a “test… to start” raising Brazilian sovereign debt in China. He hopes the bonds will be issued within the next two to three months. “We raised €5 billion in Europe. We haven’t defined the amount here in China for the first issuance, but it will be up to 5 billion (yuan),” he specified. The Finance Ministry’s strategy, according to Agencia Brasil, is to lessen Brazil’s dependence on a single source of financing; i.e., the dollar.
In their meeting, Pan and Durigan also discussed possibilities for greater financial policy coordination between their two countries, Global Times reported. They agreed that “as important representatives of the Global South, China and Brazil should comprehensively strengthen cooperation in the financial sector,” both for the benefit of their companies and people and for global economic development and financial stability. Areas discussed ranged from strengthening financial coordination in fora such as the G20, BRICS and IMF, to deepening bilateral investment and financing, including through the use of local currencies.
The Panda bond announcement was heartily welcomed by some of Brazil’s private business executives. Speaking on behalf of the Executive Director of the Brazil-China Business Council, Claudia Tevisan, and representing Brazil’s giant mining company Vale, Bruno Flora Sales told the 2026 Brazil-China Green Finance Forum in Shanghai this week, that the decision “goes beyond a financing decision. It signals Brazil’s commitment to diversifying its investor base and deepening its strategic partnership with China—paving the way for Brazilian companies to access new capital markets.”
Brazil is the first Ibero-American government to issue sovereign renimbi-denominated debt in China. Four other nations have issued Panda bonds so far this year: Slovenia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, and Indonesia. Overall, PBC officials expect the amount of Panda bonds to reach a record high by the end of the year, Global Times reports.
