Milei Pitches Banks $71 Billion Swap to Clean Up Argentina Debt

Argentine President Javier Milei is proposing a local debt swap that could top $71 billion, aiming to stabilize the country’s finances by pushing off maturities and reducing the deficit to zero.

Economy Minister Luis Caputo and Finance Secretary Pablo Quirno told representatives of local and foreign banks operating in Argentina that they plan to issue new peso bonds in February to swap for the 2024 maturities, according to four people with direct knowledge of the meeting that took place Thursday afternoon.

It would be the largest domestic debt rollover in Argentina’s history, surpassing a similar maneuver last year by Caputo’s ...