About

The international debt securities (IDS) statistics cover borrowing activity in debt capital markets. They are issued outside the local market of the country where the borrower resides. They capture debt instruments designed to be traded in financial markets, such as treasury bills, commercial paper, negotiable certificates of deposit, bonds, debentures and asset-backed securities (including issues conventionally known as eurobonds and foreign bonds but excluding negotiable loans). The IDS statistics are compiled from a security-by-security database built by the BIS using information from commercial data providers. Amounts are presented at face value.

The IDS statistics are presented by the issue's currency, maturity and interest rate type, and the issuer's nationality and residence. The residence of the issuer is the country where the issuer is incorporated, whereas the nationality of the issuer is the country where the issuer's parent is headquartered.

For more details on the debt securities included in the IDS, see "What constitutes an international debt security in BIS statistics?", Box A, BIS Quarterly Review, June 2021.

Metadata

Methodology

Methodology

The IDS tracks outstanding amounts of international bonds, ie bonds issued outside the local market of the country where the borrower resides. The IDS BIS debt securities are harmonised with the recommendations of the Handbook on securities statistics, an internationally agreed framework for classifying debt securities issues (see paragraphs 7.58 to 7.62 for details). In particular, paragraph 7.62 lists the criteria (in descending order of preference) for classifying a bond as international:

  1. The debt security is listed on a recognised exchange in the domestic economy (domestic issue) or in a foreign economy (international security).
  2. The debt security has an ISIN with a country code that is the same as the legal domicile of the issuer, and/or is allocated a domestic security code by the domestic national numbering agency (domestic security). Alternatively, the debt security has an ISIN with a country code different from the one for the country where the issuer is legally domiciled and/or has an international security code issued by a foreign national numbering agency (international security).
  3. The security is issued in the domestic currency (domestic issue) or in a foreign currency (international issue).

Please refer also to "What constitutes an international debt security in BIS statistics?", Box A, BIS Quarterly Review, June 2021.

Research and publications

Highlights of global financial flows

International bank claims continued to grow in the first quarter of 2017, led by 2.8% year-on-year growth of claims on the non-bank sector. Year-on-year growth in interbank claims turned positive for the first time since the first quarter of 2015. The stock of international debt securities grew by 4.1% year on year in the second quarter of 2017, led by increased net issuance from the non-bank sector. Growth in euro-denominated credit to the non-financial sector outside the euro area picked up, led by a 12.3% rise in bank loans in the year to ...

FAQs

Data are released every quarter. The target publication dates and the latest data reference period are listed in the Statistics release calendar.

The BIS debt securities statistics differentiate between debt securities targeted at international investors (international securities) and those targeted at home investors (domestic securities). The methodology follows the principles outlined in the Handbook on Securities Statistics. Paragraphs 7.58 to 7.62 cover the classification by market. In particular, paragraph 7.62 lists the criteria (in descending order of preference) when there is uncertainty over the market of issuance. The criteria are:

  1. The debt security is listed on a recognised exchange in the domestic economy (domestic issue) or in a foreign economy (international security).
  2. The debt security has an ISIN with a country code that is the same as the legal domicile of the issuer, and/or is allocated a domestic security code by the domestic national numbering agency (domestic security). Alternatively, the debt security has an ISIN with a country code different from the one for the country where the issuer is legally domiciled and/or has an international security code issued by a foreign national numbering agency (international security).
  3. The security is issued in the domestic currency (domestic issue) or in a foreign currency (international issue).

No. The BIS compiles these statistics by aggregating securities-level data from commercial data providers (currently, Dealogic, Euroclear, Thomson Reuters and Xtrakter Ltd).

No. The IDS track outstanding debt securities of issuers, with breakdowns by currency, maturity, instrument, location and nationality of issuer. There is no information on the holders of outstanding securities.

Country aggregates for securities-level data are compiled both by the immediate residency of an issuing entity and by the location of the parent (or headquarters) of the issuing entity. In many but not all cases, both aggregations point to the same country.