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Covered Bond Opinion

  • This week’s slate of covered bonds saw record after record broken — a mania that was evident across the whole FIG sector. With European rates set to remain at their lows throughout next year and the macroeconomic backdrop continuing to improve, it is difficult to see what could spoil the party.
  • FIG
    The FIG Idea studies the form for bank capital's most important competition of the year — set to run this October (or perhaps not).
  • We would all like to believe green bonds are helping cut carbon, but if banks don’t change their lending policies, they only serve to make us feel good.
  • If the market commentariat thinks that the buy-side should be worried by upcoming European Central Bank tapering, then someone has yet to tell investors.
  • President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker’s address on the state of the EU proposed more Europe as a remedy for most of what ails the bloc. A European finance minister, European Monetary Fund, and a tighter decision making system should give the Union a clearer direction. Maybe — but then he would say that.
  • European banks are pushing the conversation on from simply meeting regulatory capital requirements towards optimising the cost of their capital stacks.
  • For years there's been talk of online lenders and challenger banks disrupting the UK banking sector, but reports that Goldman Sachs is ready to plant its flag in the UK savings and consumer lending market is the biggest challenge established UK giants are likely to face.
  • Nordea announced on Wednesday that it was moving its headquarters from Sweden, where it has been since it was formed through a series of mergers in 2000, to Finland, where it will be supervised by the European Central Bank, as part of the ‘Banking Union’ arrangements.
  • Julius Baer’s additional tier one deal on Tuesday attracted a splendid book — enough to gladden the hearts of syndicate bankers and funding officials. But it highlights the absurdity of Europe’s Market Abuse Regulation.
  • Last week’s deals from BBVA and CaixaBank show just how much the Spanish banking sector is powering ahead of Italians in getting to grips with capital regulations.