Investor appetite for Treasury Bills rises ahead of election year

Uganda’s domestic debt market showed strong momentum in the latest Treasury Bills auction, with investors heavily oversubscribing all tenors in a sign of continued confidence and high liquidity in the financial system.

According to the Bank of Uganda’s results for Auction No. 1218, held on November 19, 2025, the government received an impressive UGX 567.1 billion in total bids against an offer of UGX 75 billion.

The 364-day bill dominated the auction, attracting UGX 426.97 billion in tenders—far exceeding demand for the shorter tenors—as institutional investors continued to lock value in longer-dated government paper.

Of this amount, the central bank accepted UGX 274.7 billion, underscoring the government’s strategy to secure longer-term domestic financing. The 182-day and 91-day bills also posted strong performance, pulling in UGX 88.21 billionandUGX 51.89 billion in bids respectively, with competitive bidding accounting for the overwhelming majority of submissions.

Yields on the securities remained attractive, with the 91-day bill priced at a 10.705% annual discount rate, translating into a money market yield of 10.999% and an effective annual yield of 11.461%.

Overall, the auction achieved high bid-to-cover ratios—3.928 for the 91-day and 3.095 for the 364-day—confirming robust appetite for Uganda’s short-term sovereign debt. The government accepted a total of UGX 314 billion across all maturities, providing significant short-term funding while reinforcing investor confidence ahead of the 2026 economic cycle.