BEIJING -- China Development Bank, one of the country's major policy banks, issued bonds worth 13.5 billion yuan (about $1.93 billion) Thursday, raising funds to fight the novel coronavirus outbreak.

With a one-year maturity and a fixed interest rate at 1.65 percent, the bonds were issued through multiple market channels to provide emergency financing for epidemic prevention and control.

Bonds worth 8 billion yuan were issued through the domestic interbank bond market and the Bond Connect program, a market access scheme allowing overseas investors to invest in the Chinese mainland's interbank bond market.

A total of 5.5 billion yuan of bonds were available to be purchased by individual investors via electronic channels.

The bank is prepared to provide further financial support to the epidemic control by issuing more bonds, it said.