Europe

Caisse Centrale du Crédit Immobilier de France (3CIF) came to market with a five year bond on Monday, paving the way for fellow French agency SNCF to follow up with its green debut.

The dollar market is returning to full swing for SSA borrowers, but its depth could be tested next week when two of its biggest names are expected to hit screens in the same tenor.

Swedish Export Credit (SEK) joined the ranks of SSAs increasing their funding programmes in response to the Covid-19 crisis this week. Meanwhile, Norway’s Kommunalbanken (KBN) has dropped its target by $2bn as a result of a weakening Norwegian kroner.

Robert Ritchie is joining Wells Fargo as head of banking and capital markets for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Eurozone sovereigns extend their syndication spree this week with Cyprus and Ireland mandating banks for new deals on Monday. Both sovereigns are preparing bigger funding programmes in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Adani Transmission has raised a further $90m US private placement, according to market sources, after it became earlier this year the first Indian company to raise debt in the market since 2007.

Equity bankers have suggested that some shareholders might be tempted to come to market to sell secondary shares in accelerated trades, reopening a market largely shut because of pandemic-related volatility.

Shares in UK newsagent chain WH Smith rose more than 4% on Monday morning after it confirmed it was preparing a capital increase to repair its balance sheet after the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus led to a large drop in the number of shoppers at its lucrative airport stores.

This week's scorecard looks at the progress Nordic agencies have made in their 2020 funding programmes at the start of the second quarter.

Compagnie de Financement Foncier (CFF) on Monday became the first covered bond issuer in April to tighten pricing from initial guidance. Other issuers will take confidence from it to consider longer dated funding, offering an alternative to European Central Bank’s repo facilities.

Ukraine’s Privatbank saga has ratcheted up again as the lender filed a new claim, worth $5.5bn, against its former owners.

Svenska Handelsbanken attracted €8.5bn of demand for a new preferred senior bond on Monday, as credit markets started the week on a strong footing. The Swedish lender said the transaction would help it to ‘prudently manage’ its liquidity position.