Banks

Banks are already closing in on a record January in terms of new bond sales in the sterling market, as foreign and domestic issuers take early advantage of funding opportunities in the currency.

BNP Paribas and UniCredit were each more than twice subscribed for new tier twos on Wednesday, as banks launched into sales of subordinated bonds more quickly than usual at the start of the new year.

UBS is ramping up collaboration between its investment bank and its wealth management unit, as it seeks to find more revenue opportunities from its client base of wealthy individuals and family offices.

Danske Mortgage Bank, Santander UK, Raiffeisenlandesbank Hypothekenpfandbrief and UniCredit Bank AG were marketing covered bonds on Wednesday, steering well clear of negative yields by tapping into healthy demand for long dated assets.

Barclays has appointed Christian de Haaij, formerly of Goldman Sachs, for its European banking business.

Citi has said it is still committed to equity trading after the departure of Murray Roos, co-head of its global equities business.

The State of Israel released initial price guidance on Wednesday for its dual tranche dollar 10 year and 30 year bonds as market participants hailed Tuesday’s Iranian strikes on Iraq airbases hosting US troops — and US President Donald Trump’s response — as a de-escalation of tensions between the two nations.

Two major insiders offloaded £375m of stock in NMC Health, the troubled UAE-based private healthcare company to cover debts on Tuesday. The share sale, which was priced at a 19.7% discount to close, came weeks after a short selling attack on NMC Health by US activist hedge fund Muddy Waters, which caused the company to lose more than half of its market value.

A Dkr6.4bn (€856m) block of shares in Danish renewable energy firm Ørsted reopened the EMEA ECM market on Tuesday evening and attracted huge investor demand for the stock — including from ESG investors.

There was no let-up in the barrage of new bond supply from financial institutions in the middle of the week, as issuers put their bets on investors caring more about putting their cash to work than getting caught out by political risks.

Reden Solar, a French company that constructs and manages photovoltaic power plants, has sold a green euro private placement (PP).

Altice has announced a refinancing for its units in Portugal, Israel and Domican Republic, targeting €2.75bn-equivalent of new senior secured bonds across euros and dollars in five year non-call two and eight year non-call three format.