Sri Lanka secures long-awaited US$2.9 billion IMF bailout after China-backed debt-restructuring plan

Sri Lanka secured a US$2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund on March 20, 2023, a crucial step for the bankrupt nation to stabilise its economy and begin restructuring its debt. Sri Lanka had been grappling with its worst economic crisis since 1948, and defaulted on its overseas debt for the first time in May 2022. The country cleared its largest hurdle for IMF approval in early March 2023 when China, its biggest bilateral creditor, gave assurances that it would support the nation’s debt restructuring.