Europe

The primary euro public sector market kicked off for the year but it's a very different environment from the start of 2017 and 2018. Borrowers will not be supported by net purchases from the European Central Bank, spreads will be pushed up and new issue premiums will go higher — but how much? Borrowers with smaller programmes would do well to wait for more liquid names to gauge the market tone.

The European Investment Bank and Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten showed the strength of the dollar market on Tuesday as they sparked the sector into life for 2019 with benchmarks offering minimal concession. Another pair of SSAs are hoping to emulate that success on Wednesday.

Belgium and KfW received well oversubscribed order books for 10 year euro benchmarks on Tuesday, with several public sector borrowers set to follow in the euro market this week.

UniCredit has hired Audrey Sebban as head of debt capital markets, FIG and SSA for France, the bank said on Tuesday.

While leveraged market participants expect loans to maintain their lead over fixed income in volume terms, some underwriters and lawyers believe market fatigue is beginning to make borrowers turn their attention to high yield bonds again.

As bitcoin investors reel from losses sustained last year, UK bitcoin exchange group Coinfloor has spun off its futures arm into a new exchange that will be owned by a number of firms and prominent individuals in the cryptocurrency market.

Austrian construction firm Porr has become the first Schuldschein borrower in 2019, launching a pair of deals totalling €150m that are offered in three maturities. The deal was launched on Monday, and some of it is for green projects.

After a near two year absence from the market, Allianz SE opened books on a new senior deal on Tuesday to kick off the supply of insurance debt in 2019.

UniCredit came to the dollar market on Tuesday, looking to sell a public senior non-preferred bond after its large private placement a few months ago. The bank was thought to be offering a large premium.

The Italian government has agreed to provide a guarantee for Banca Carige’s bonds, giving it a chance to shore up its liquidity position. The state has also put the option of a precautionary recapitalisation on the table.

First it was a pair of car finance issuers. Then came a pair of utilities. And on Tuesday it was a pair of telecoms companies that came to the corporate bond market. But the latest couple really got investors revved up with more than €16.5bn of orders placed.

Sweden’s Modern Times Group has signed more bank funding related to spinning off Nordic Entertainment, as the media company’s talks with PPF to sell its Bulgarian business were scuppered after falling foul of regulators.