Commerzbank

It’s often the simple things that can make all the difference in whether one has a productive meeting. Room ergonomics, the view out of the window and a decent cup of coffee are all apposite metrics to consider in relation to your loan banker’s psyche.

Three issuers from France, Belgium and Germany raised €2.5bn in the covered bond market this week, and another €1bn transaction was expected from a Finnish issuer on Friday. The deals were all remarkable for the fact that the funding levels set new records for all issuers as the ECB’s allocation continued to grow, squeezing out other investors.

United Internet — Vimpelcom — Geberit

Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas's shareholders approved a €1bn capital increase at an extraordinary shareholders meeting on Thursday in Barcelona, allowing the Spanish building and environmental services company to begin restructuring a €4.5bn loan.

Auctions will be the main source of euro issuance from sovereigns, supranationals and agencies for the rest of the year, after the European Stability Mechanism this week opted against sounding banks for a syndication during its last deal window next week. But the market was strong for issuers that did come this week, with a pair of deals priced at the tight end of initial price thoughts.

France's Région Bretagne printed its first ever medium term note on Wednesday, in a move to diversify its investor base and achieve more competitive terms on its debt.

Geberit, the Swiss bathroom fittings maker, has allocated its Sfr1.29bn (€1.07bn) loan for the purchase of Sanitec, a Finnish competitor. Five Swiss and five foreign banks are in the deal.

Guarantor: Federal State of Baden-Württemberg

United Internet will complete its Schuldschein deal on Friday, raising at least €500m, according to a banker on the deal.

Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas, the Spanish building and environmental services company, is close to reaching agreement with its creditors on a debt restructuring, according to a spokesman for the company.

United Asia Finance (UAF) has launched a HK$2bn ($258m) dual tranche loan into senior syndication with two banks. The borrower is making a rapid return to the loans market, having sealed its last financing as recently as April.

JAB Holding, the investment company of the Reimann family, has issued a debut €750m seven year bond. Real money investors took 96% of the allocations and the bond was priced inside the secondary level of Wendel, the French investment company, though it softened slightly in the secondary market.