The UAE is set to launch next month its domestic dirham-denominated treasury bonds with a benchmark auction size of 1.5 billion dirhams ($408 million).

The first auction date, to be held in May 2022, will be announced soon, followed by a series of periodical auctions, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Wednesday.

The conventional T-Bonds will be denominated in UAE dirhams to develop the local bonds debt market and ultimately help develop the mid-term yield curve, the ministry added.

The bonds will initially have tenures of two, three and five years, followed by a 10-year bond later.

The securities will be auctioned and traded through Bloomberg’s Auction System and settled through a local platform, compliant with international standards, built and operated by Euroclear Bank, the statement said.

In 2018, the UAE issued a law allowing the federal government to begin issuing sovereign debt.