As a part of its plan to finance the 27-nation bloc’s recovery from the Coronavirus crisis, around 20 billion Euro which is $24.2 billion has been raised by the European Commission through a 10-year bond. The inaugural transaction of the NextGeneration EU program shall be the largest ever institutional bond issuance in Europe as stated by Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission President. Devised by the member states to get their economies back on track, the money will help finance their national recovery plans.
Digital European Union COVID-19 travel pass was presented by the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stating that she was curious to test and witness how the certificate worked. While on the other hand, EU nations will have to recognize the free vaccine certification commencing from July 1st which can take the form of both paper and digital showing whether a person has either been vaccinated against the virus, has been tested negative lately or has recovered from the disease.
Saying that the European Union shall pay less than 0.1 per cent interest, the bonds were priced at very attractive terms, according to Von der Leyen. Around 100 billion in bonds and bills are expected to be issued by the end of this year, she added.
An estimated 800 billion shall be raised from the capital by the EU’s executive arm to finance stimulus by the end of 2026. A 1.8 trillion Euro budget and pandemic recovery package has been agreed upon by the member states.
