In a special meeting, Thursday, April 30, Archbold Village Council agreed to finance $4.2 million in debt, using one-year notes, at an annual interest rate of 1.495%.

Steve Szanto, managing director of Sudsina & Associates, LLC, financial advisors, Aurora, said there were three bids.

The winning bidder was Jefferies & Company, a New York City-based investment firm. Farmers & Merchants State Bank entered a bid of 2.55%, while Huntington Bank bid 4.23%.

To market the notes, Szantos had the Village of Archbold rated by Standard and Poor, a credit rating firm. The company rated Archbold an A, and assigned the village an SP1+ rating for short-term credit.

Szantos said the village could increase its rating to A+ or AA if it formalizes some of its policies. In five years, Archbold could achieve an AA credit rating. The top rating is AAA.

A higher credit rating could result in the village paying lower interest rates on the money it borrows.