CEE Bonds

Latvian short term finance company 4Finance has released initial price thoughts at 11.75% for a five year put three dollar bond. The bond is the first international deal from a Latvian non-sovereign issuer for seven years.

Westpac New Zealand broke more than a month of silence from international issuers in the Swiss franc market on Tuesday, selling a new six year print. The deal was priced around flat to outstanding paper, with investors starved of primary and secondary supply willing to take the aggressive level.

Caught up in the sell-off in the emerging markets, issuers from the CEEMEA region have been reluctant to come forward for new bonds this week.

Ukrainian Agricultural company Mriya has not made interest and amortisation payments on certain of its debt obligations and is warning bondholders of its $250m 10.95% 2016s and $400m 9.45% 2018s that its balance sheet may need to be restructured. Other Ukrainian companies may find themselves running into similar difficulties as the crisis in their country escalates.

Russia is now subject to its toughest economic sanctions since the end of the Cold War. With the US and Europe effectively closed to them, Russian borrowers are searching for other options. Asia is top of their list, but they are unlikely to find the support they want.

Empik Media & Fashion (EMF Group) has postponed the sale of €240m of notes due to adverse market conditions, even though the firm had already set price talk at 8.5%-8.75% on the projected deal.

Sberbank, the largest of Russia’s state owned banks has been included on the list of EU sanctioned entities, shocking some investors who had hoped the sanctions would be limited to policy banks. But although the identities of the institutions sanctioned were clear enough, bankers are now deciphering just what it is they are not allowed to do for them.

The Russia-Ukraine crisis has risen from its slumber in a roaring angry temper. Russia’s next recovery in the capital markets may not be as quick or as painless.

Play, the Polish wireless telecoms firm, issued a €415m payment-in-kind toggle bond on Wednesday inside price guidance.

Sanctioned Russian development bank Vnesheconombank is hopeful that syndicated loans will not be included in the list of sanctions, and in bonds it could look to turn to the Chinese renminbi or Russian domestic market for funding, said one source at the bank.

Play, the Polish wireless telecoms firm, is looking to raise €415m through a payment-in-kind toggle bond.

VTB Capital maintained that it will not be impacted by the latest round of EU and US sanctions with one source at the bank claiming that the restrictions only limit the raising of new financing by the investment bank's parent company, VTB group. But others were not so certain and VTB bonds widened another 40bp on Wednesday morning.