By Laura Contemori – ROME (Econostream) – Italy’s Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) on Wednesday announced the launch of a new five-year inflation-linked government bond called "BTP Italia Sì" to be offered from June 15 to June 19.

The new bond, "exclusively reserved to individual investors and other persons similarly classified (the so-called retail market),” will mature in 2031 and will pay semi-annual coupons linked to Italian inflation as measured by the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), in addition to a guaranteed fixed rate to be announced on June 12, MEF said in a press release.

MEF said the fixed rate may only be revised upwards at the close of the placement depending on market conditions.

Investors who purchase the bond during the placement period and hold it until maturity will receive an additional final bonus of 0.6% of invested capital.

The bond will be sold on the MOT platform, which is Borsa Italiana’s electronic market for bonds and government securities, through dealer banks Intesa Sanpaolo and UniCredit, with Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena and Banco BPM acting as co-dealers.

The minimum investment amount will be €1,000, with full allotment of the requested amount guaranteed.