RI General Obligation Bond Sale a Success Reflecting State’s Strong Credit and Outlook

RI General Obligation Bond Sale a Success Reflecting State's Strong Credit and Outlook

Published on Wednesday, May 06, 2026

Providence, RI - Rhode Island General Treasurer James A. Diossa announced the successful negotiated sale of $221,360,000 in General Obligation Bonds, including $149,060,000 of Series A tax-exempt bonds and $72,300,000 of Series B taxable bonds. The sale took place on April 7, 2026.

The $149,060,000 tax-exempt bonds were priced at the narrowest spread to the benchmark 20-year MMD tax-exempt scale in the history of Rhode Island general obligation bond issuances. In addition, the spreads to U.S. Treasuries are among the lowest the State has had on taxable debt.

Investor demand was oversubscribed with orders totaling more than 3 times the par value of the offering, despite volatile market conditions and rising tensions in the Middle East. As a result, the yields on the bonds were lowered generating additional savings for Rhode Island taxpayers over the initial pricing. The final all-in true interest cost for the bonds was 4.1% (tax-exempt) and 4.5% (taxable), slightly lower than the previous sale of State General Obligation Bonds in June 2025. The underwriting team was led by Cabrera Capital Markets and included BofA Securities, Inc., J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stantley, and Raymond James.

"Rhode Island bonds continue to be a smart and reliable investment for individual and institutional investors," said Treasurer Diossa. "As Treasurer, I'm focused on ensuring that Rhode Island remains well-positioned to attract capital for our housing, infrastructure, and community investment needs while saving taxpayers money."

This bond sale followed the announcement of strong state bond ratings. Fitch Ratings, Moody's Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings affirmed the State's AA+, Aa2 and AA ratings, respectively. All three rating agencies gave Rhode Island a Stable Outlook. You may learn more about Rhode Island GO bonds here.

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