Europe

Six borrowers announced offerings in the European high yield bond market on Monday as borrowers looked to beat what could have been disruptive Dutch elections two days later.

Wacker Chemie picked Credit Suisse, Citigroup and Commerzbank on Tuesday night to sell 21% of Siltronic, the German company that makes silicon wafers for mobile phones and computers, after its share price had rallied by more than 260% over the past 12 months.

Shares in Avantium, the Dutch renewable chemicals company, closed 3.6% higher on Wednesday after it made its debut on the Amsterdam and Brussels exchanges following the completion of its €103m IPO.

Shares in Playtech, the UK gaming software business, closed 1.1% lower on Wednesday after its founder Teddy Sagi sold 4.1% of the company to Boussard & Gavaudan Investment Management for £113m.

The riotous strength of the corporate bond market was on full display on Wednesday, with even the distraction of the Dutch elections unable to stop spreads from tightening and order books from bulging.

The ‘Basel IV’ output floor agreements, which regulators call the completion of ‘Basel III’, are stalled until US president Donald Trump's administration names negotiators to show up to committee meetings, according to two members of the Deutsche Bundesbank.

KfW launched a £300m tap of a December 2019 line on Wednesday, pulling in over £350m of orders in spite of sharp swings in the strength of the currency.

Covered bonds are well supported but markets have seen profit-taking on an asset swap basis reflecting the view that spreads are expected to go wider in coming months, traders told GlobalCapital on Wednesday.

State owned Turk Eximbank attracted 22 banks to its €421m refinancing deal, according to a banker on the deal.

The Greek Organisation of Football Prognostics (OPAP), the Greek gambling company, launched a sub-benchmark sized bond with a yield range below 4% on Wednesday — the first high yield from Greece this year.

BNP Paribas issued the first French senior non-preferred deal in floating rate format on Wednesday and enjoyed a strong reception in a move that could well spur compatriot banks to follow. Callable French senior non-preferred deals are, however, still some way off, said bankers.

Spie, the French technical services provider, brought the first new leveraged buy-out financing in the euro high yield bond market for three months this week with a €600m seven year senior unsecured bond.