Europe

Risk adverse equity capital markets banks have largely moved away from bidding for auctioned block trade activity in 2019, and are concentrating on large client-mandated business, which they can de-risk before they launch.

Ex-ANZ and UBS banker Allison MacKinnon will join RBC Capital Markets to lead its debt capital markets offering for UK companies.

The Servant of the People party was victorious in Ukraine’s parliamentary elections on Sunday. The move cements the new president Volodymyr Zelensky’s control and should allow him to pursue the reforms mandated by the IMF.

Banca Popolare di Sondrio is set to become the latest Italian bank to access the market for subordinated debt this month, tapping into a thirst for yield among European investors.

Financial institutions have nearly already raised as much green bond funding in 2019 as they did across the whole of last year, with LBBW’s funding chief suggesting that the market is still ‘growing on both sides’ as it is seeing more investor demand and issuer interest.

As core markets in the northern hemisphere begin to cool, SSA issuers are looking towards a Kiwi and Aussie periphery unaffected by the summer close.

Standard and Poor’s has upgraded its ratings for covered bonds issued by Kutxabank, as the Spanish lender looks ahead to a series of redemptions over the course of the next year.

French property company Foncière Verte has sold €85m of privately placed bonds.

National Australia Bank has hired Ross McEwan as its new group CEO, as the bank seeks to improve its reputation after a damning report criticised its conduct.

Voyager Air Ltd, the Guernsey-domiciled aircraft leasing firm, has cancelled its $200m IPO on the London Stock Exchange, blaming difficult market conditions.

Regional REIT, the UK property investment trust managed by London & Scottish Property Investment Management, has raised £62.5m of equity capital, £12.5m more than expected, but sources close to the deal say it was a difficult sell because of investor concern about Brexit.

Perhaps in anticipation of the summer shutdown, which appeared to have begun this week in the Swiss franc market, the hydroelectric power plant operator, Aarekraftwerk Klingnau (AKA) grasped the opportunity to launch its inaugural senior unsecured bond issue at the end of last week.