Banks

A sharp rise in advisory and debt underwriting revenues drove Bank of America’s investment banking in the third quarter, its results showed on Wednesday.

VodafoneZiggo, the Dutch telecoms joint venture evenly split between Liberty Global and Vodafone, is raising €3.1bn in fresh capital. It joins industry peers such as Salt, Wind Hellas and Altice France who have rushed to the market this autumn to take advantage of favourable conditions.

The World Bank seemed to find the point of investor exhaustion with its 10 year dollar deal on Wednesday following a recent spate of successful similar deals from other borrowers.

Kommunalbanken has picked the banks to lead its first euro benchmark since 2017, while the European Stability Mechanism has sent out a request for proposals for its upcoming transaction.

Mann+Hummel, a veteran borrower in the Schuldschein market, struggled to place a Schuldschein, according to market sources, with participants citing ZF Friedrichshafen’s blockbuster transaction as well as the market’s over-indulgence in the auto sector this year as chief reasons.

Acquisition hungry Bravida has signed a Sk2.5bn (€197m) loan, in a deal that makes up a major part of the Nordic building facilities service provider’s long term capital structure.

Citigroup launched a senior unsecured bond in the sterling market on Wednesday, just as the UK government appeared to be making some progress over its Brexit deal with the EU.

BPCE and Banca Farmafactoring launched senior deals this week, with both issuers enjoying healthy receptions to their offerings. BPCE’s non-preferred mandate drew over €2.75bn of orders and the Italian issuer saw its preferred bond attract €850m at the spread level.

Banque Ouest Africaine de Développement (BOAD) was able to tighten pricing beyond guidance on a 12 year bond, one of its longest dated issues, this week.

Aldar Investment Properties has raised a 10 year $500m sukuk, achieving a tightening of 35bp beyond initial guidance.

The postponement of Argenta Spaarbank’s non-preferred senior bond on Tuesday was a reminder that investors are not taking a shine to everything sent their way in the market. The large volume of trades this year has prompted investors to become “selective” about what they buy, analysts at Rabobank said.

Russian potash producer Uralkali hit the market on Tuesday, tightening pricing on a $500m bond issue, the borrower's first international deal since 2013. DCM bankers are confident Russian issuance will continue to fill the market throughout the fourth quarter, as Norilsk Nickel began a roadshow.