North America

In this round-up, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) put pressure on banks to provide more private sector financing, the US trade representative said he was not yet satisfied with China’s trade promises and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) planned to increase cross-border capital market deals.

Christine Lagarde, head of the International Monetary Fund, warned politicians on Thursday not to roll back banking regulations established in the wake of the financial crisis, as she highlighted a spike in financial pay. She also discussed ways of making finance more sustainable in its outcomes, and how fintech could improve inclusivity.

Guarantor: Canada

David Malpass, US candidate for the World Bank presidency, has serious weaknesses and lacks experience, according to a former chief economist at the multilateral lender.

The SSA euro market’s record start to the year shows no signs of slowing down, with bankers confident that the conditions which have helped draw record book after record book are here to stay. That backdrop helped Export Development Canada (EDC) to an excellent debut in the currency, as well as a very strong trade from the veteran European Stability Mechanism (ESM).

Dollar swap spreads tightened dramatically in the middle of the week — with bankers at a loss to explain why — but the SSA sector was still “rock solid” in one syndicate head’s words, so the currency should be open for business next week. The only two dollar trades this week — a bond market return from CDP Financial and first deal of the year from Erste Abwicklungsanstalt — both went well.

Guarantor: Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ)

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group grabbed the record for the biggest Yankee dollar deal of 2019 and the largest ever by a Japanese financial institution when it printed a $5.5bn five-part transaction on Tuesday.

The high-grade dollar clocked up a banner week but syndicate desks were kept busy by volume rather than size as 22 issuers took home only $15bn.

Futu Holdings, theparent of Hong Kong-based Futu Securities International, has hit the road with an up to $130.8m Nasdaq IPO. The firm has cut the size of its float amid shaky markets, but the deal is still being used as a yardstick by its larger competitor Tiger Brokers, which is snapping at Futu’s heels with its own US listing. Jonathan Breen reports.

Paccar Financial has become the latest in a string of US issuers that have tapped the euro market over the past two weeks. The financing arm of the US maker of trucks and trailers has raised €300m via the sale of new 0.125% notes due in March 2022.

Export Development Canada made light work of its debut euro benchmark on Wednesday, with the deal heavily oversubscribed and printed 3bp tighter than price thoughts. While applauding the deal, some on-looking SSA bankers felt the level on offer might have been slightly generous — although they admitted that fair value is always fuzzy on an inaugural trade.