North America

Discover Bank tested a rare format for a US subordinated deal this week, with a tier two bond that has a coupon that resets if not called. An analyst suggested other US banks could copy it.

The funding for KKR’s acquisition of BMC Software is set to add almost $2bn of high yield bonds in euros and dollars this week, the last portion of a cross-border, multi-billion debt deal that has enlivened the leveraged finance markets.

American Express set the pace in a front-loaded week for financial institution bond issuance in the US, as it took home $2.35bn ahead of the latest meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee.

The US corporate bond market made a stuttering start to August as AEP Transmission pulled a deal, after monthly corporate dollar supply in July had slumped to its lowest level for a decade.

As Asian exchanges increasingly embrace the US model for new listings — the introduction of variable voting rights being a case in point — disintermediated IPOs may perhaps soon be the next fad, writes Clawback.

India’s HDFC Bank has raised $2.22bn through a qualified institutional placement and a concurrent sale of American Depository Shares (ADS).

The Schuldschein market's heavy reliance on car industry borrowers means the prospects of trade wars affecting the sector are worrying investors and arrangers alike.

An exemption for Canadian covered bonds from bail-in is positive, said Fitch this week despite a general concern about the lack collateral available in some covered bonds, and an overvalued Canadian housing market.

Web browser Opera has bagged $115m from its Nasdaq IPO after a flood of demand made top-end pricing a certainty, according to a source close to the deal.

High yield investors are hoping that a glut of fallen angels in US corporate credit might help alleviate the drought of issuance they have suffered this year, but a report from S&P Global argues that concerns over the risks in triple-B rated borrowers might be overdone.

US companies stayed away from issuing bonds this week, amid continuing volatility and concerns about second quarter earnings after Facebook offered "bombshell guidance".

Primary and secondary equity capital market investors will hope that Facebook's nightmare week is an aberration rather than an indication that tech growth is under pressure. A combination of earnings woe for other tech firms and an escalation in the trade war between US and the rest could hamper issuers' chances, writes Sam Kerr.