Italy

Nomura has hired two bankers into its investment banking division, a new head of investment banking for Italy and a FIG coverage banker.

A trio of eurozone government borrowers are rumoured to be mulling deals in the coming weeks, with conditions at the long end in euros looking stronger than earlier in the year.

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Italy’s Iccrea Banca made its senior return in a very constructive FIG primary market on Tuesday, increasing the size of its short dated bond to satisfy a large and internationally diverse array of orders.

UniCredit announced an €11.8bn loss on Thursday as expected, paving the way for its €13bn rights issue and fifth shot at a transformational rescue. The bank said it had signed agreements preparing for 14,000 redundancies, but away from this carnage, the underlying businesses appeared to stay strong.

Istituto Centrale delle Banche Popolari Italiane (ICBPI) on Thursday sold a payment-in-kind bond to fund its latest acquisitions in the consumer card sector.

UniCredit has named the bankers to fill a series of senior country posts in its financing and advisory business, which covers equity and debt origination, coverage and M&A.

Loan bankers are demanding clarity on the true ownership of the 19.5% stake in Rosneft privatised at the end of last year, as Intesa Sanpaolo prepares to syndicate the €5.2bn loan it has provided to back the deal, write Dan Alderson and Jon Hay.

Shares in UniCredit, Italy’s largest bank, closed 1.7% lower on Thursday after it unveiled the terms for its fully underwritten €13bn recapitalisation late on Wednesday.

UniCredit underscored weaknesses in its balance sheet and capital position on Monday, issuing investors with another series of warnings ahead of its planned €13bn rights issue.

Spain added another entry to its growing book of blockbuster trades this week, using a novel early-bird feature to help drum up demand for its traditional 10 year annual opener. The deal came as Italy’s spread over Spain widened, despite a court ruling that analysts said should be positive for political stability in Italy in the near term.

Italian infrastructure holding company Atlantia followed on from a Wednesday investor call with a benchmark eight year trade on Thursday.