South Korea

South Korea’s GS Caltex Corp sealed a Swiss franc denominated bond on Thursday, diversifying away from its usual Korean won and US dollar funding.

South Korea’s Hanwha Life Insurance Co will meet international investors from next week ahead of a subordinated transaction. The issuer is one of many from the country that is looking to beef up its capital ratios, as the government gets ready to adopt new international accounting standards.

SK Lubricants has begun gauging investor appetite for its W1.6tr ($1.5bn) IPO in South Korea through a syndicate of seven banks.

SK Innovation will sell a quarter of its stake in SK Lubricants through a W1.2tr ($1.2bn) IPO in South Korea next month.

Shinhan Bank was forced to pay a new issue premium (NIP) to complete its Basel III-compliant tier two deal on Monday, like most other issuers in recent weeks. But the South Korean borrower still managed to price its bond tighter than expected.

IT service provider Lotte Data Communication is planning to launch an IPO, filing for listing approval on Wednesday.

Lotte Shopping raised W303.6bn ($285.4m) from a five year put three exchangeable bond on Wednesday, which some bankers thought was priced at overly generous terms.

South Korea’s Kookmin Bank returned to the Formosa bond market on Monday, raising $300m from a floating rate note (FRN). Taiwanese investors’ eagerness to buy Korean financial credits helped the issuer price a relatively cheap deal versus an international transaction.

Four Asian issuers began marketing dollar deals on Monday, as a number of others started testing buy-side appetite through roadshows. But borrowers will have to temper their expectations on size and price, faced with a choppy market backdrop.

Temasek Holdings made a splash in the block market this week, raising W1.07tr ($1bn) with a pair of overnight trades in South Korean pharmaceutical company Celltrion and its distribution arm Celltrion Healthcare — an approach that was in line with the Singapore sovereign wealth fund’s strategy to rebalance its portfolio. Jonathan Breen reports.

Hyundai Capital America raised $800m from a dual-tranche issuance on Wednesday, the same day that chemical giant China National Chemical Corp walked away with more than $6bn from the market.

Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings has raised W1.07tr ($1bn) after offloading stock in South Korean pharmaceutical company Celltrion and its distribution arm Celltrion Healthcare in a pair of overnight block sales.