Europe

Italy’s UniCredit was able to raise €1bn of new tier two capital without having to pay a large premium on Wednesday, adding to recent evidence that the subordinated debt market is in rude health.

ABN Amro is set to boost its capital ratios through merging its operating and holding companies.

Crédit Agricole has appointed three senior members of its corporate and investment bank, including a new global head of global markets.

The Republic of Turkey has tightened price guidance for its three year sukuk to 5.9% area, with books for the deal in excess of $3.5bn.

Potential sellers in the EMEA equity capital markets are still waiting for an improvement in market conditions before launching trades, with little activity outside of primary capital raises taking place across Europe.

Two numbers stood out in Natixis’ fourth quarter results: the €259m loss from Asian equity derivatives, and the €249m of performance fees generated by its asset and wealth management business.

The Netherlands became the latest sovereign from the eurozone to receive a record order book in 2019, as it sold a new 10 year benchmark bond through auction on Tuesday.

Banco Santander broke new ground in the additional tier one market on Tuesday, when it said that it would not be calling its €1.5bn 6.25% bonds. Many investors were stunned and even angry about the bank’s actions, which could have major implications for the way in which call decisions are viewed across the sector.

One of the most covered aspects of the bond market by more mainstream media in recent months has been the value of triple-B rated corporate debt due to mature in coming years and what problems that might cause in the event of an economic downturn. However, this has prompted investors to start to quell any fears of these risks.

Swift, the provider of messaging services for financial institutions, is opening its know-your-customer (KYC) registry to corporates, which it says will save time for both international companies and their banks.

A strong start to the year for public sector dollar issuance is keeping up the pace so far this week, with last week’s slowdown during the Chinese New Year holidays only appearing to make investors hungrier. Both of Tuesday’s dollar deals were well oversubscribed — one spectacularly so — and there is a full card of issuers waiting to come on Wednesday.

The European Financial Stability Facility completed its funding for the first quarter with a dual tranche offering on Tuesday, which was priced with minimal concession, according to the leads.