Colombia Buys Dollars in Spot Market as Swap Payment Looms

Colombia’s finance ministry is once again buying dollars in the spot market, traders say, as authorities gear up to pay off a controversial Swiss franc swap before the presidential election later this month.

The government bought more than $1 billion on Wednesday, according to estimates by Banco de Bogota, BBVA and BTG Pactual — with the latter putting weekly purchases at $1.6 billion.