U.S. lenders seek collateral to back $20B Argentina bailout, WSJ reports

A collection of large U.S. banks including Citi (C), JPMorgan (JPM), Bank of America (BAC), and Goldman Sachs (GS) is trying to put together a $20B loan to Argentina without leaving themselves on the hook to effectively-bankrupt nation, the Wall Street Journal’s Alexander Saeedy and Santiago Perez report, citing people familiar with the matter. The bank loans would be part of the White house’s plan to bail out the finances of Argentine President Javier Milei’s government with a $40B package, which includes a $20B currency swap and a $20B lender-led debt facility, the authors note. The lenders are seeking some type of assurance or promise to ensure they will get their funds back, the authors say, noting that bankers are awaiting guidance from the U.S. Treasury Department on what collateral Argentina would be able to provide.