Mizuho

Banks have ramped up their use of green senior bonds in the fourth quarter of 2017, with many of their latest offerings sporting fantastic results in terms of pricing. But, as Tyler Davies reports, European financial institutions have yet to mix the principles of green finance with the tenets of bank capital — an experiment that could be even more beneficial for everyone involved in the growing green bond market.

The sterling corporate bond market took until Wednesday to join the issuance frenzy the euro market had enjoyed in the first half of the week, but three deals in two days reminded issuers and investors that it is still an option to be considered into the end of 2017.

On Thursday, the sterling corporate bond market reminded participants it was still going strong after the euro market had dominated the first half of the week. Petroleos Mexicanos, also known as Pemex, and Western Power Distribution followed the success of Wednesday’s deal from Manchester Airport.

If the only benchmark euro deal on Thursday had been true to its roots, it would have built a waiting list rather than an order book. But demand still far outstripped supply when Italian luxury sports car manufacturer Ferrari sold its second corporate bond issue.

Thailand’s Siam Commercial Bank is courting investors for a dollar bond, to be sold through its Cayman Islands branch, while China Minsheng Banking Corp is also marketing a transaction through its Hong Kong arm.

The world’s largest bread maker, Grupo Bimbo, returned to bond markets on Tuesday after a three year absence. Its 30 year bond was sold mainly to US investment grade buyers, despite the issuer’s Mexican nationality.

A £640m ($839m) refinancing for Tata Motors has entered the senior phase of distribution with seven banks running the deal.

On Monday, Whirlpool became the fourth US issuer to use the euro corporate bond market in the last 15 days when it sold a €600m 10 year deal, 12 months after it last visited the market.

Dollar corporate bond supply kicked off November on a quiet note after the the Federal Reserve’s two day meeting kept borrowers on the sidelines following a frantic start to the week when spreads continued to tighten and cash poured into the high-grade market.

Saudi Electricity Co’s $1.75bn loan has been successfully sold down to four other banks.

Saka Energi Indonesia, the upstream oil and gas arm of Indonesian state-owned Perusahaan Gas Negara, has allocated its $250m loan. The deal is scheduled to sign next week.

Wind Tre, the Italian telecoms group, delivered Europe's largest ever high yield bond issue this week, a €7.3bn deal that has raised the bar for the market and led to expectations that more sponsors will follow suit amid heady investor demand.