ACCRA (Reuters) – Ghana accepted 438 million cedis ($110 million) worth of bids for its first 10-year domestic bond issued on Thursday but the major commodities exporter had to offer a fixed yield of 19.0 percent, according to lead arrangers.

The 2026 debut offer, open to foreign investors, drew bids for 726 million cedis – far more than the initial 200 million cedi target, according to arrangers Barclays Bank, Stanbic Bank Ghana and Accra-based brokerage firm Strategic African Securities.

Ghana, which is currently implementing a three-year economic stabilization deal with the International Monetary Fund, introduced the 10-year debt as a way to borrow for the longer-term and ease interest rates.

The total public debt was equivalent to 63 percent of gross domestic product in May but is expected to rise to around 70 percent by the end of the year on planned disbursements, the government has said.

Prior to Thursday’s issue, the West African country’s longest local currency debt maturity was seven years.

(Reporting by Kwasi Kpodo; Editing by Hugh Lawson)