Caisse d Amortissement de la Dette Sociale

This week's funding scorecard focuses on some of Europe's key supranational and agency borrowers. Forthcoming editions will bring updates from other French, German, Spanish and Scandinavian names.

A pair of European issuers attempted benchmark deals on Tuesday at the long end of the curve following the recent rates sell-off. Engorged 10 year yields allowed Cades to sell a January 2024 bond, while Asfinag sold a €750m 20 year — a deal that a number of bankers on and off the deal had expected to reach €1bn.

Finland’s Municipality Finance priced its first 144A benchmark on Wednesday afternoon. It was able to ratchet the size to $1.75bn after investors piled into the trade. Cades, meanwhile, was set to price its first seven year dollar benchmark in seven years as SSA Markets went to press.

France was sensible to wait for the needle to return to the middle of the Eurozone volatility seismograph before leading a glorious French flypast of deals across asset classes this week.

Cades on Tuesday afternoon printed its first five year euro benchmark since February 2011, a €2.5bn 1% May 2018 transaction priced at 17bp over mid-swaps or 17.1bp over the May 2018 OAT.

France, Cades and the State of North-Rhine Westphalia have mandated banks to lead manage euro benchmarks as an agreement on the Cyprus bailout provided a good enough backdrop for SSAs to get stuck into the euro market.

Cades looks set to enjoy demand for its long dated Norwegian krone paper as a favourable basis swap and agreeable investors keep deal flow healthy.

Cades racked up its largest ever dollar trade on Tuesday — a $3.5bn five year Reg S/144A deal which comfortably overshadowed its previous largest deal, a $3bn three year sold last year.

France’s Cades was set to price a dollar benchmark on Tuesday afternoon, in a break from its usual tradition of kicking off its funding for the year with a euro deal.

The UK’s Debt Management Office has mandated four banks to run a syndication slated for the end of the month. Meanwhile in dollars banks are showing Cades — which this week announced plans to print €30bn of medium and long term bonds in 2013 — ideas for a dollar benchmark.

Cades will kick off its 2013 funding programme next week with a dollar benchmark, SSA Markets understands. The borrower may launch a seven or 10 year bond to take advantage of the wealth of cash looking for yield and is prepared to extend beyond traditional maturities to get it.

Issuers should take the plunge. Those considering whether or not it is wise to pre-fund should bite the bullet and go for it.