Europe

Antonio Brina is joining JP Morgan from Bank of America Merrill Lynch to lead basic materials investment banking for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

HVB, the German subsidiary of UniCredit, on Tuesday attracted one of the highest orders books for a €1bn covered bond from a core European bank in the last six months. It was able to tighten the pricing gap by 4bp to a competing deal issued by OP Mortgage Bank.

Swiss investment firm Jacobs Holding has trimmed its stake in chocolate maker Barry Callebaut, via an accelerated bookbuild and a simultaneous private placement.

Islamic Development Bank has spurred momentum in the green sukuk market, as it announced its debut, a euro deal, in the format this week.

Investors who took part in an accelerated sale of shares in Trainline, the UK rail tickets booking website, on Monday evening, booked a 3.4% gain by Thursday's close, vindicating the decision by banks to waive a lock-up clause on private equity firm KKR, allowing it to trade out of the stock earlier.

Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten included its environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings in a mandate announcement for its upcoming sustainability bond on Monday, following in the footsteps of KfW which kickstarted the movement with its green bond tap last week.

Two SSA borrowers are coming to the market for euro deals on Tuesday. The European Financial Stability Facility and Erste Abwicklungsanstalt will both print what are likely to be their final benchmarks of the year.

UK mining company Sirius Minerals kept the dream alive with a market update on Monday, unveiling discussions with potential investors over a $600m financing package. Sirius’s shares saw a meteoric rise of up to 28% on Monday morning but the initial excitement fizzled out quickly.

Shares in Danish renewable energy firm Ørsted and in Salini Impregilo, the Italian construction company, continued to trade well this week, generating strong returns for block investors.

The covered bond market was on strong form at the beginning of the week, with Austria’s Volksbank Wien extending its covered bond curve with its second ever trade, which it priced flat to fair value.

The UK Debt Management Office has chosen the banks to lead the re-opening of its 0.125% 2041 index-linked Gilt, which is scheduled to take place next week.

Issuers in the financial institutions bond market do not want to see the chance for cheap funding slip, so more are lining up deals. On Monday, Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen (Helaba) mandated leads for a preferred senior bond in euros, and UK insurer Utmost International said it was aiming for an senior unsecured bond in sterling.