Europe

Crédit Agricole today (Monday) launched the first jumbo covered bond since the end of the European Central Bank’s purchase programme, offering investors the first Eu1bn-plus 15 year transaction of 2010.

Fitch on Friday downgraded Düsseldorfer Hypothekenbank from A- to BBB- because of a change of ownership, from Bundesverband deutscher Banken to US-based investment firm Lone Star. However, as a Pfandbrief issuer, the bank should benefit from strong systemic support, the rating agency said.

Achmea Hypotheekbank has requested that Standard & Poor’s stop rating its covered bonds, which were on Friday for the first time assigned a rating by Fitch.

HSH Nordbank yesterday (Monday) priced a Eu500m three year Pfandbrief issue that could well be the last sizeable new issue bought by euro-zone central banks operating under the European Central Bank’s purchase programme, which today (Tuesday) appeared to have passed its targeted Eu60bn. [Amended.]

Yorkshire Building Society is to seek consent from bondholders to drop Standard & Poor’s ratings from its covered bond programme as a result of changes to the rating agency’s swap counterparty criteria.

HSH Nordbank will shortly close books on a Eu500m three year public sector-backed Pfandbrief that was the only sizeable new covered bond in the market this (Monday) morning, with the end of the European Central Bank’s purchase programme injecting some uncertainty into the market.

National Bank of Greece has set up a second covered bond programme “as part of its strategic planning for optimal use of its balance sheet and development of contingent liquidity”, it said yesterday (Thursday).

Standard & Poor’s today (Friday) downgraded the long term rating of ABN Amro from A+ to A, on stable outlook, in advance of the bank’s merger with Fortis Bank Nederland on 1 July. Fitch on Wednesday said that it expects to affirm ABN Amro’s rating on completion of the merger, but cut the bank's individual rating.

Eurohypo yesterday (Wednesday) priced a Eu500m four year mortgage-backed Pfandbrief, the fourth sub-Eu1bn deal of six sizeable issues launched this week. Meanwhile, HSH Nordbank plans to access the benchmark covered bond market.

Eurohypo is today (Wednesday) sizeing a four year Pfandbrief at Eu500m, the lower end of a targeted size range, in response to muted demand in a market where Eu4.25bn of supply has hit the market in a day-and-a-half.

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, the world’s oldest banking group, yesterday (Tuesday) publicly inaugurated its Eu10bn Italian covered bond programme with a five year issue that achieved a targeted size of Eu1bn.

Fitch yesterday (Monday) affirmed at AA- and removed from negative review mortgage-backed Pfandbriefe issued by Corealcredit, one of eight issuers whose mortgage covered bonds were placed on Rating Watch negative in January because of concerns over credit risk posed by their commercial real estate exposure and limited information on collateral.