Senegal bondholder group appoints White and Case as legal adviser, sources say

DAKAR/LONDON, Sept 9 (Reuters) – Holders of Senegal’s sovereign bonds have organised a creditor group and hired White & Case as legal counsel, four sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters, after the West African nation announced plans to rework its debt.

The group counts at least eight fund managers among its members, the sources said, declining to name the firms.

White & Case declined to comment.

The firm has advised governments including Ethiopia and Ukraine in debt restructurings, and has also advised creditor groups in Lebanon and Sri Lanka.

Senegal has grappled with its debt since 2024, when then-new leaders revealed billions in borrowing that was misreported by the previous government.

The total eventually topped $13 billion, according to ratings agency S&P and others, the equivalent of a quarter of the country’s economy. The scandal also led the International Monetary Fund to freeze a crucial lending programme.

While some of Senegal’s political leaders repudiated a restructuring, the sheer size of the debt made it difficult for the country to convince the IMF that its debts were on a sustainable path — a requirement for a much-needed new loan.

Last week, the Fund and Senegal announced a staff-level agreement for a fresh $2.2 billion loan, alongside an announcement from Senegal’s economy ministry that it had agreed to an “enhanced common framework” — a reference to the G20 mechanism through which low-income nations rework their debt.

(Reporting by Portia Crowe, Libby George and Karin Strohecker. Editing by Mark Potter)

By Portia Crowe, Libby George and Karin Strohecker