Abbey goes for quality over size

The UK’s Abbey yesterday priced a Eu750m seven year UK regulated covered bond in line with guidance at 150bp over mid swaps. Though ostensibly a smooth book build, those close to the deal said it was far from straightforward, in large part owing to the pricing challenges it faced with respect to its parent company, Santander. Nonetheless, with careful attention to pricing comparables and deal size, a good quality book was successfully achieved.