Sberbank CIB

The city of Moscow is set to issue green bonds within the week, following the sovereign’s return to the Eurobond market on Thursday. The issuer is seeking foreign investor interest in its rouble-denominated green debut.

Russia launched its first international bond of the year on Thursday, which some have labelled as a show of strength by the sanction-hit country. Market participants are now debating which investors will end up buying the trade.

Russia has mandated an exclusively Russian consortium of banks to arrange a euro bond issue. Market participants say the extra cash is not necessary but is Russia’s way of demonstrating its access to markets a month after its sovereign debt was slapped with further US sanctions.

BCS Global Markets, the investment services division of Russia’s largest independent broker, has hired a new treasurer.

Sovcomflot, the shipping company majority-owned by the Russian state, is planning to enter the debt capital markets. But the dollar bond mandate comes at a tricky time as military escalation between Russia and Ukraine has caused investor confidence of assets on both sides to fall.

Mobile TeleSystems, Russia’s largest mobile operator, has sold a social bond in roubles, as it became the latest major Russian corporate to foray into ESG financing. The issuer has not ruled out a return to international markets, although in recent years it has pivoted towards domestic funding.

Russian Railways ventured into the Swiss franc market this week to sell the first hybrid corporate bond in over two years, a sign of a maturing Swissie market, according to local market participants.

A flurry of Swiss franc issuance dusted the market this week, as domestic and foreign borrowers entered a more settled market.

Met Group, the Swiss energy trading company, has signed €915m of short term loans, reducing its facility for the first time for years, after ABN Amro, one of its main lenders, pulled out of this kind of financing. Met found two other banks to replace ABN but wanted to focus on price with the deal, rather than size.

Sistema, the Russian diversified holding company, has raised a sustainability-linked credit line through the country's largest lender, Sberbank. Though there has been an increase in sustainability-linked financing in Russia, this deal marks the first ESG-linked loan between a domestic corporate and borrower.

The Russian Federation and the Republic of Hungary brought euro-denominated trades on Thursday, taking the opportunity to get funding done during good conditions in the run-up to the US Thanksgiving holiday, after which liquidity is expected to dry up.

Norilsk Nickel, the Russian metal and mining company, was set to issue a benchmark dollar bond on Thursday evening, just months after it was found responsible for a series of major diesel spills.

Veon, the emerging markets telecommunications firm, has mandated for a rouble bond issue, six months since its last trade, a hard currency offering.

Three CEE banks have announced new bond issues this week. Armenia's Ardshinbank has printed a $300m five year bond, Credit Bank of Moscow has initial price guidance out on a dollar five year benchmark and Sovcombank, another Russian bank, has released plans for a roadshow.

Russian conglomerate Sistema and the Russia-China Investment Fund have sold a Rb15.9bn ($249.7m) chunk of stock in Detsky Mir, the Russian toy store, after a fully marketed offering designed to boost the freefloat of the company and diversify the shareholder base.

Rusal has signed the first internationally syndicated sustainability-linked loan from Russia. The heavily oversubscribed facility is part of a slowly growing shift towards green financing in Russia, said bankers.

Russian potash producer Uralkali hit the market on Tuesday, tightening pricing on a $500m bond issue, the borrower's first international deal since 2013. DCM bankers are confident Russian issuance will continue to fill the market throughout the fourth quarter, as Norilsk Nickel began a roadshow.

Russian potash producer Uralkali is going on the road for five year dollar paper, returning to the international market for the first time in six years.

Rating: —/—/BB

A pair of CEE corporates, Veon Holdings and NordGold, released initial price guidance for bonds on Tuesday, both offering paper after a break from international issuance.

Sovcombank was in the market on Monday morning with a subordinated bond, just 10 days after the issuer’s credit rating was upgraded by two major ratings agencies.

Siberian Anthracite, the largest producer of anthracite coal in Russia, has closed a dual currency loan refinancing, adding a large euro chunk to its existing dollar debt. The deal points to a growing inclination towards euro funding among Russian borrowers in a bid to avoid operational and sanction-related obstacles, say bankers.

Rating: Baa3/BBB-/BBB

Russian petrochemicals firm Sibur was able to print $500m of five year paper in its return to the bond market this week, brushing off news of a drone attack on Saudi oil infrastructure and a subsequent 10% jump in the oil price.