Crédit Agricole

Bankers were surprised that the African Development Bank placed a one year bond last week linked to environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.

The African Development Bank has issued its first offshore renminbi bond, in what the supranational has described as a ‘strategic objective’ in response to a growing investor base for the currency.

The Bank of East Asia returned to the market with a Basel III-compliant additional tier one (AT1) deal, paying no premium despite reporting disappointing interim results for the first half of 2019 and amid the turmoil in Hong Kong SAR.

Evidence is mounting that Enel’s $1.5bn sustainability-linked bond, issued last Thursday, introduced not just a new product, but a new market. In recent days the deal has generated intense interest, and Enel has committed to using the product extensively in future, writes Jon Hay.

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Mexican state-owned oil giant Pemex emphatically showed it has access to capital markets on Thursday as it received more than $35bn of orders on the way to a $7.5bn trade that could grow as existing bondholders participate in an exchange.

In the nervous last day before the European Central Bank's much-hyped monetary policy announcement on Thursday, only two corporate bond issuers brought deals. Both Orange, the French telecoms group, and Worldline, the French payments group carved out of Atos.

Investment grade corporate bond issuance has slowed right down on Wednesday, as issuers and investors are getting cautious before the European Central Bank monetary policy meeting on Thursday.

The sustainability-linked bond issued by Enel on Thursday opens a new chapter in the green finance market. Anyone tempted to think this will be a freak should think again. The idea is sure to catch on.

Corporate bond issuance in euros was busy again on Tuesday, with four deals, but they were moderately sized, so the total was nothing like Monday's haul of €6bn and £1.25bn.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has priced $3.15bn of green bonds in US dollars, Hong Kong dollars and offshore renminbi (CNH), achieving a number of firsts in the process.

Corporate bond issuers made full use of the last few days before the European Central Bank's much-anticipated announcement on monetary policy on Thursday. Despite the hectic activity of the past two weeks, investors were still oversubscribing deals two or three times.