Italy

A careful build up helped Veneto Banca raise €200m in tier two debt on Tuesday, as the bank looks to improve its capital position ahead of a share sale in 2016.

CVC Capital Partners sold its last shares in Cerved, the Italian rating agency and credit information provider, on Monday night, in a block trade led by JP Morgan.

The Italian bank has mandated leads for a 10 year benchmark and its second deal this year.

The resolution of four small Italian banks has trimmed several basis points off the common equity tier one capital ratios of Intesa Sanpaolo, UBI Banca and UniCredit.

The versatility of equity-linked debt in today’s hot market was in evidence again on Monday, when the City of Turin used the product for the first time to raise €150m of five year debt against its stake in Iren, the Italian multi-utility group.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) issued a €1bn 10 year Obbligazioni Bancarie Garantite (OBG) this week. The deal came with a 2.125% coupon, the highest of any covered bond sold this year.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) issued a €1bn 10 year Obbligazioni Bancarie Garantite on a comfortably oversubscribed book on Thursday, paying investors a rare triple digit spread, a coupon of over 2% and a 65bp spread over BTPs. With the European Central Bank expected to cut the deposit rate in December, carry trades are once again back in vogue.

FCA Bank, the financing joint venture of Fiat Chrysler and Crédit Agricole, issued a €500m no-grow bond on Monday.

There were strong signs on Thursday that investors are betting heavily on further monetary policy easing by the European Central Bank, as Italy sold debt at a record low yield.

UniCredit’s profits took a 30% hit in the third quarter, but the drop in core bank earnings was far more modest and its investment bank posted a year-on-year increase.

Italy could sell three year debt at its lowest ever yield on Thursday, with its secondary levels hovering near all-time lows. It would be the second record breaking auction for the sovereign in two days, after it placed one year bills at its lowest ever level on Wednesday.

Istituto Centrale delle Banche Popolari Italiane (ICBPI) sold its €1.1bn PIK note on November 6 in what looked like a comeback week for the high yield bond market — but it turned out to be a short-lived pick-up.