France

Cheesemaker Groupe Bel’s landmark US private placement under French law was funded this month. The company has sampled all the major sources of investment grade private capital in the recent past, having issued euro PPs and Schuldscheine before its new US PP.

Cellectis, the French gene-editing company, has launched a $100m US capital raising to help fund its research and development operations. The sector has had a record year for issuance in 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic has concentrated minds on global healthcare innovation.

France and Belgium announced borrowing programmes for 2021 this week. France is aiming for the same amount as this year, while Belgium is paring back its needs.

BPCE issued a transition bond this week to finance loans made by Natixis, its corporate and investment bank. The deal gave Natixis a chance to demonstrate the value of using a green weighting factor when allocating capital to new lending, as the mechanism helped the issuer select its assets and prove its own commitment to sustainability.

France has lined up its 2021 funding programme, looking to sell some long end syndications and to return to the green bond market for its sophomore outing in the format.

Société Générale took advantage of superlative conditions in the US dollar market at the start of the week, raising $2bn of funding with a tightly priced deal in non-preferred senior format.

Three of France’s most famous entrepreneurs won acclaim from investors on Monday as they closed books on the IPO of 2MX Organic, a new €300m special purpose acquisition vehicle (Spac) that is seeking to shake up the European organic food sector.

Alstom, the French manufacturer of trains, trams and buses, has completed its €2bn rights issue to fund the acquisition of Bombardier's train division.

A new special purpose acquisition company (Spac) founded by three celebrated French investors has prompted hopes that more deals will follow in Europe next year. Spacs have been one of the most talked-about aspects of the global equity capital markets, particularly in the US, where more than $65bn has been raised through Spacs this year, according to Dealogic.

The recent strong run of equity-linked issuance in EMEA continued on Monday night with a €200m tap by French payments company Worldline of its 2026 convertible bonds.

Three of France’s best known entrepreneurs have partnered up to launch a special purpose acquisition vehicle (Spac) on the French stock exchange, which is seeking to invest in organic and sustainable consumer goods. The deal has made a fast start on its first day of book building.

French hotels group Accor this week became the latest issuer to tap the convertible bond market for financing in the wake of the rally in value stocks following positive Covid vaccine news in early November.