Loans and High Yield

Sri Lankan commercial lender Sampath Bank is following in the footsteps of the sovereign by tapping the loan market for funds, launching a $50m borrowing with an unspecified greenshoe.

Since the UK's Brexit vote, the European high yield market has produced an abundance of single-B rated deals — even though issuers are paying dearly for their timing.

A clutch of loan deals have commitments due over the next week, as the market looks to allocate debt before the anticipated August slowdown.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals sealed its debut $200m international bond at a yield of 4.5% on Monday, which bankers on the deal said was the tightest pricing achieved by an Indian high yield name.

CDB Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Development Bank Corp, is looking to raise as much as $500m from a new deal while unrated China Minsheng Investment Corp has returned for a three year bond, with both relying on keepwell structures.

Indian conglomerate Aditya Birla Group is understood to be in talks with banks for a syndicated loan for one of its flagship businesses, Grasim Industries.

Petrochemical manufacturer Ineos on Monday launched a €1.1bn-equivalent refinancing deal into a high yield market that has thrown caution to the wind.

French residential real estate company Foncia on Monday reopened the book for a €800m loan backing its acquisition by a Partners Group-led consortium, after tightening pricing beyond guidance.

The surging rally in credit markets since the start of the month hit an impasse this week, as trader caution set in ahead of key policy decisions by the Bank of Japan on Friday and the Bank of England next week.

Eircom, the Irish telecoms company, on Monday launched a €200m tap of a high yield bond issued last month, which would cut its exposure to bank lending in its new €2.4bn debt structure.

An auction to settle credit default swaps referencing Portugal Telecom International Finance returned a low final price, but slightly higher than had been indicated by secondary bond and CDS levels despite greater physical settlement interest to sell.

Rabobank has hired a banker for its loan syndications team in Hong Kong, replacing Kitty Leung who left the firm earlier this year.