In Sovereign Debt Talks, Wealthy Fund Managers Are Trying Something New

  • Funds start to push ESG targets in sovereign restructuring
  • NGOs worry about the potential implications for democracy

Hakainde Hichilema

Photographer: Andy Buchanan/Pool/Getty Images

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For a meeting between a defaulting nation’s leader and a bunch of wealthy creditors, the five-star InterContinental hotel on London’s Park Lane seems an appropriate choice of venue. Smart enough without being absurdly expensive.

It was here in November that Zambia’s president, Hakainde Hichilema, gathered together a group of investors to discuss restructuring his country’s up to $17 billion of external debt, according to people present.