Europe

If the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) and Euronext strike a deal over Borsa Italiana, a leading player in European government bond trading will change hands. Euronext may turn to the bonds and equity markets to finance the acquisition.

Ignitis Grupe, the state-owned Lithuanian energy and utility company, has opened books on its IPO on the Nasdaq Vilinus and London Stock Exchange. The company’s listing will benefit from a framework agreement signed with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, under which it will participate in the IPO.

German hospital operator Asklepios Kliniken launched a Schuldschein on Monday with an initial target of €200m. Investors have doubled down on their interest in pharmaceutical firms this year and throughout the pandemic, prompting a substantial increase in the market’s exposure to the sector.

Last week’s surge in covered bond issuance caused certain Norwegian deals to trade more softly by Monday. But traders viewed it as a buying opportunity, given robust technical backdrop.

José Manuel Campa, chairperson of the European Banking Authority, suggested on Monday that countercyclical capital buffers could be more effective if they were set in a harmonious way across jurisdictions.

Rolls-Royce, the UK maker of aircraft engines, has confirmed it is considering holding a £2.5bn ($3.19bn) equity raise, but buy-side sources were struggling to make the investment case for the company given the uncertainty over its future. Its stock fell 10% on Monday on the announcement and fears that the UK will return to a lockdown to stop the dramatic rise in Covid-19 cases.

Julius Baer was forced to postpone a new transaction amid 'worsening market conditions' on Monday, after coming close to setting a new record for the lowest ever additional tier one (AT1) coupon in dollars from a European bank.

Italian lender Iccrea Banca is expecting to add a one year call option to its latest senior deal, which could arrive in the euro market this week.

Spain, which is said to be readying a 10 year deal will have to contend with S&P's decision to change its ratings outlook for the country to negative on Friday. However, its secondary curve has not been badly affected.

Hipgnosis Songs Fund, the London-listed investment trust focused on music royalties, has returned to the equity capital markets with a new £250m share sale after rapidly deploying the proceeds of its last capital raising in July.

Spanish telecoms group MasMovil is preparing a €720m bond, the second part of the financing for its take-private by Cinven, KKR and Providence Private Equity. Most of the €2.9bn financing came through a loan issue, allocated in July, with the bonds readied following shareholder acceptance for the offer last week.

Rabobank has issued its largest green bond, a day after publishing a new Sustainable Funding Framework that will enable it to print debt in four different green and social flavours — a structure it hopes will give investors more clarity.