Key points

• The term ‘hidden sovereign finance’ refers to sovereign debt transactions in favour of a central government, sub-state entity or state-owned enterprise, whose entire existence or whose terms have not been fully disclosed in violation of local administrative or constitutional requirements.
• The phenomenon was first reported with regard to the Mozambique hidden loans case, but it likely extends beyond that.
• Lenders include private banks, state-owned banks and commodity traders. Products include loans, government guarantees and trade financing schemes linked to commodities exports.
• New voluntary transparency standards for lenders, including the ‘G20 Voluntary Principles for Debt Transparency’, encourage lenders to disclose a large part of the loans and guarantees to sovereigns and sub-sovereigns.
• As international contracts, hidden financing deals can be litigated in commercial courts. The principles of capacity and authority can, under certain circumstances, invalidate a contract signed in violation of the borrower’s law.
• Corruption can sometimes be an additional factor in the decision not to disclose the debt transaction.

中文翻译：

---

隐藏的主权金融

关键点

• “隐性主权金融”一词是指以中央政府、地方实体或国有企业为受益人的主权债务交易，其全部存在或其条款没有完全披露，违反当地行政或宪法要求。
• 这种现象最初是在莫桑比克隐性贷款案中报道的，但它可能不止于此。
• 贷款人包括私人银行、国有银行和商品交易商。产品包括与商品出口相关的贷款、政府担保和贸易融资计划。
• 新的贷方自愿透明度标准，包括“G20 债务透明度自愿原则”，鼓励贷方披露对主权国家和次主权国家的大部分贷款和担保。
• 作为国际合同，隐性融资交易可以在商事法庭提起诉讼。在某些情况下，能力和权限原则可以使违反借款人法律签订的合同无效。
• 腐败有时可能是决定不披露债务交易的额外因素。