Société Générale

Institutional investors that acquired vanilla options on sterling against the US dollar ahead of the Verizon-Vodafone deal that took place on February 21 have moved to sell the instruments back into the market due to a lack of volatility in the currency pair.

Saudi Arabian telecoms firm Mobily has signed two Shariah-compliant financing agreements totalling Sr2.1bn ($536m) with Nordic export credit agencies, to fund the acquisition of equipment from Ericsson and Nokia Siemens Network (NSN).

Société Générale has launched digital warrant payouts on the Eurostoxx 50 Volatility Index (Vstoxx), the first of their kind on the underlying. The new payouts will complement the existing call and put warrants the firm already offers on the Vstoxx.

French carmaker Renault obtained a whopping €6.2bn book for its €500m seven year bond yesterday, as it rode the wave of demand for crossover-rated corporate bonds.

ICBC International Holdings has priced the debut offering from its new $1.2bn MTN programme and offered investors a new issue premium to encourage participation.

Renault, the French carmaker rated Ba1/BB+, benefited from the strong demand for crossover credit today when it priced a €500m no-grow bond with a new issue premium of just 5bp.

The senior unsecured market is witnessing this year’s first real glimpse of a frustrating trend for FIG syndicates — banks turning down excellent issuance conditions because of reduced funding needs.

ICBC International Holdings has announced the first offering under its new $1.2bn MTN programme.

Suez Environnement raised €350m through a convertible bond on Monday, with investors leaping on the now rare opportunity to buy an investment grade equity-linked deal.

Commodities companies are keeping loans bankers busy in western Europe, as UK broker ED&F Man joined Amsterdam Commodities and Trafigura in the market.

Credito Emiliano’s €750m five year has earned praise for its tight pricing, but it was demand from outside the eurozone, including from Asia and Switzerland, that suggests Italy’s recovery story is gaining traction.

Private placements from peripheral European financial institutions will dominate the market in the coming weeks as investors hunt for yield, according to MTN dealers. These banks could steal the spotlight from Nordic financial institutions, which have dominated the market this week.