Société Générale

Coal is about the most basic commodity. It has become deeply unfashionable in recent years, tarred as the worst culprit in global warming. The charge may be true, but the accusations are so vehement partly because promoters of other hydrocarbons — oil, gas, biofuels — want to disguise their own responsibility.

State Bank of India has picked banks for a fresh $500m fundraising that is expected to launch into syndication in the next couple of weeks.

One of Vietnam’s largest property developers Vingroup raised VN$3tr ($135.5m) from a dual-tranche offering on February 18 in what was only the second transaction in the country to be backed by the Credit Guarantee Investment Facility.

In a very low-key transaction, the Czech Republic’s Energetický a průmyslový Holding (EPH) will complete its €1.5bn loan refinancing in the coming days.

Export-Import Bank of Korea (Kexim) has hired banks to run investor meetings in Europe for a potential euro bond, which would be its first syndication in the currency since 2013.

The Russian loan market has brought its first dollar deal of the year with Siberian Coal Energy Company (SUEK) signing a long-awaited $1bn pre-export finance facility. The deal is its first syndicated loan since January 2014 and exceeds the size of any Russian loan of 2015.

Tata Steel has received a new commitment at the senior level for its $1.5bn refinancing, with banks yet to join in general syndication.

Macquarie issued its inaugural covered bond on Thursday, meeting a strong reception with the five year €500m paper twice subscribed by investors. Westpac has also opened books on a $1.35bn deal, as Fitch said it expects Australian covered bond issuance to rise this year.

A healthy pair of benchmarks this week and strong conditions mean the euro market is wide open for a pair of supranationals to bring planned deals next week.

Crédit Agricole explicitly backed the newly proposed type of French senior debt in its full year results this week, as support for the asset class appears to be spreading across the country’s financial institutions.

Saverglass, the French bottle maker, has allocated its €365m loan at tight pricing with syndication not proceeding past the early bird stage.

Société Générale has named Sayan Das its head of financial institutions group in India, a newly created role at the bank.