Nordics

The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) said on Wednesday that it would be "reasonable" for some profitable banks to go back to paying dividends from next year, so long as the economy recovers from pandemic restrictions.

Finnish financial services group Sampo has begun cutting its stake in Nordea, one of the Nordic region’s biggest banks, following pressure from Elliott International, the activist hedge fund, to simplify its business.

OP Mortgage Bank is set to become the first bank in Finland to issue a covered bond secured on energy efficient mortgages after announcing a green covered bond framework. The prospective deal follows a growing crowd and comes after a string of debut covered bonds with an environmental, social or governance theme issued this year.

Swedish fintech company Nordnet is preparing to test investor sentiment towards European IPOs following the US election, having announced its intention to float on Nasdaq Stockholm.

Although Danish covered bond issuance in euros is likely to prove limited, the domestic market continues to provide a rich seam of supply for foreign investors. Confidence is likely to have been bolstered by the limited impact of Covid lockdowns on the country's mortgage market, along with recent proposals to harmonise and update its legal framework.

Rising coronavirus cases and circling uncertainty around the upcoming US election is driving the Swedish krona market towards higher rated, domestic names.

This week's scorecard looks at the progress Nordic agencies have made in their 2020 funding programmes at the end of October.

Denmark’s banks are set for a quiet end to the year, according to bankers, as changes made to their minimum requirements for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL) have taken the pressure off of funding.

Supply in the SSA dollar market is clustered at the short end of the curve, as borrowers focus on defensive tenors ahead of the upcoming US election. Kommuninvest landed a sizeable benchmark on Tuesday, while Kommunalbanken will follow suit on Wednesday.

Scatec Solar, the Norwegian solar energy company, raised Nkr4.75bn ($512m) through an equity placing on Tuesday night. The sale was for 15% of the company’s share capital — 5% more than it was allowed to issue through a non-preemptive placing. It made up the balance by borrowing shares from its largest shareholder.

Link Mobility, the Norwegian provider of business to consumer messaging and mobile services, has begun trading on the Oslo Børs following the completion of its Nkr6bn ($650m) IPO.

The Kingdom of Denmark made a rare appearance in dollars on Tuesday, printing $2bn in its first outing outside its domestic market in six years. Its success in the currency has emboldened the World Bank to follow suit.