RBC Capital Markets

KfW and Bpifrance were the first public sector borrowers out of the blocks in euros following last Thursday’s European Central Bank meeting in which it unleashed its new comprehensive stimulus package.

SSA issuers turned towards niche currencies this week to meet a range of demand across the Australian and Canadian dollar curves. KfW and the Asian Development Bank started the week printing in Australian dollars, before the World Bank joined them in the currency while also returning to the Maple market.

The Asian Development Bank hopped on to screens on Tuesday to print a new 10.5 year green Kangaroo bond. Demand for longer dated Kangaroo bonds has been muted recently, leading to smaller transaction sizes. So introducing a green label helped the ADB feel “comfortable” with achieving its minimum issuance size, said Anthony Ruschpler, treasury specialist at the ADB in Manila.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) hit screens on Monday morning with initial price thoughts for a new 10 year green Kangaroo bond. The trade follows a busy week for SSA Kangaroo issuance at the long end of the curve, driven by Japanese demand according to one banker.

The International Finance Corp (IFC) hit screens this week with its first Canadian dollar green bond. The C$750m ($567m) print was the issuer’s largest ever in the currency, as well as the tightest an international SSA issuer has printed against the Canadian Mortgage Bond (CMB) curve, a large and liquid Canadian dollar benchmark.

The dollar SSA market saw a clear schism this week between the maturities investors favour, with shorter end trades tightening pricing while longer maturity deals were forced to print in line with initial price thoughts.

SSA issuers of dollar bonds were able to push harder on spread than they have in recent weeks on Wednesday, surprising syndicate bankers away from the deals.

The International Finance Corp hit screens on Tuesday afternoon with its first Canadian dollar green bond. The C$750m ($567m) bond is the issuer's largest ever in the currency.

After two huge days of corporate bond issuance, Thursday was much quieter, with issues only from Vier Gas Transport and SBB Norden — not because the market was worse, but just because most of the issuers that wanted to come this week had crowded into the first two days.

The World Bank is planning to add fully digital cash settlement, multiple currencies and more nodes to its ‘bond–i’ platform, according to a banker involved in developing the blockchain system. Earlier this month, the supranational added tap functionality, as it raised A$50m ($33.7m) of capital.

The Province of Quebec slipped into the sterling market on Wednesday to print a fresh £250m December 2024 bond.

The UK Debt Management Office has announced that it is planning to reopen its 2054 Gilt through syndication in the week beginning September 9.