Euro

The European Central Bank has expressed concern about extreme rates volatility. But until it stops buying and allows the private sector to become re-established, its true mission as liquidity provider of last resort will remain in conflict with its determination to expand its balance sheet.

The dollar market continued to sustain covered bonds on Wednesday as DNB mandated leads for a five year, a day after ANZ issued $1.25bn in the same tenor. The Australian bank got better execution than would have been achieved in euros and could have priced even tighter. The excellent result is testimony to the issuer’s long absence and to the depth of demand evident across the dollar fixed income market.

NordLB reopened its four year public sector backed Pfandbrief on Wednesday in a move which locks in cheap funding. But the 10bp yield offers little buffer in a market characterised by rate volatility.

The Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive was supposed to be universally good for covered bonds because they are excluded from being bailed in. But on Wednesday and Thursday Moody’s and Fitch took opposing views on Allied Irish Banks due to the implementation of their methodologies that take account of the same new regime.

Ålandsbanken priced a €250m no-grow five year Finnish covered bond on Tuesday after an extensive marketing period. The trade offered a decent pick up over where the comparables named by the leads were quoted.

Leads KSK Koeln, LBBW, and WGZ opened books on an €250m eight year Pfandbrief for Kreissparkasse Koeln (KSK Koeln) on Monday as Bund futures showed signs of stability. Nordic issuers are circling and could take advantage of better conditions ahead of an EU meeting on Greece at the end of this week.

Despite the unexpectedly positive market tone on Thursday, bankers say that euro benchmark covered bonds are unlikely next week, as new issue premiums would need to be hefty. Several issuers are lining up for sub-benchmark trades however, and the sterling and dollar markets remain a possibility.

The German Pfandbrief market continues to shrink, driven by a decline in the public sector, which is now almost the same size as the growing mortgage sector, according to the first quarter cover pool data recently published by the Association of German Pfandbrief banks (VDP).

The European Covered Bond Council has proposed a new generation of secured funding notes, halfway between covered bonds and securitizations. But getting them off the ground is still in the hands of the regulators.

Fitch has put the £1.1bn of covered bonds issued by Clydesdale Bank on Rating Watch Negative (RWN) after its parent National Australia Bank said it intended to proceed with a sale of its subsidiary.

The long end of the French, Belgian and Dutch covered bond market is effectively closed for primary issuance because the rout in government bonds has made them too expensive. But bankers are hopeful that, with careful consideration of tenor and pricing, benchmark issuance should eventually return in shorter tenors, though probably not until June.

Kreissparkasse Koeln (KSK Koeln) has named lead managers for an eight year covered bond. The bank has issued two previous covered bonds, but this is the first time it is targeting investors outside of the German savings bank network. The deal is expected in the near future.