Crédit Agricole

Barclays began marketing a multi-tranche Samurai trade on Monday, as some FIG bankers claimed European banks were still baulking at the new issue premiums being offered by US visitors to the euro market.

European Investment Bank

Commerzbank, Caisse Francaise de Financement Local (Caffil) and Bayerische Landesbank (BayernLB) invigorated the long end of the covered bond market this week with 10 year deals, a duration which had not been seen for over four months.

Shares in Abengoa, the troubled Spanish renewable energy company, plunged again on Thursday and its credit default swap spread widened sharply, on unconfirmed reports in the Spanish press that banks including Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup and Société Générale had declined to underwrite its rights issue.

UniCredit Bank Austria (Baca) returned to the covered bond market on Tuesday to issue the first Austrian Pfandbrief since the country’s Financial Markets Authority (FMA) announced a debt moratorium on bonds issued by Heta Asset Resolution AG (HAR).

Covered bonds proved their worth this week as, despite difficult market conditions, 10 borrowers were able to collectively raise more than €8bn at levels that looked attractive compared to senior unsecured financials.

Tractel is preparing to join a relatively quiet early September leveraged loan market with the launch of a €235m loan package next week.

Two French borrowers took advantage of a resurgent corporate bond market on Wednesday, with electrical components manufacturer Schneider Electric and real estate company Icade selling euro debt.

European Investment Bank has added further evidence of the euro market’s growing strength over dollars — but its deal was still at the lower end of Earn size expectations despite a decent new issue premium.

The European Investment Bank has lined up a euro benchmark that SSA bankers are praying will add to a strong €5bn deal from KfW last week — but the supranational is unlikely to aim for the same size as its German peer.

After a month-long drought in the euro covered bond market, a minimum of three deals could be priced this week after Crédit Agricole leapt on improved conditions to reopen the market on Thursday.

The Schuldschein for German healthcare group, Asklepios has been increased from €250m to around €600m after oversubscription from investors, according to a banker on the deal.