◆ Fragile US-Iran peace gives risk assets an excuse to rally ◆ Canaries debuts amid clash over Spanish regionals' run ◆ Dollars run dry as borrowers eye late June pre-funding, summer lull

French company diversifies funding after inaugural dollar deal last year

Issuance beyond 15 years could return if rates stabilise

Kookmin Bank goes digital in dollars, yen issuance ahead of BoJ, as Volkswagen meets euro demand

◆ Wide range of investors buy highly rated bonds ◆ DNB achieves one of the tightest spreads since Covid-era QE days of 2021 ◆ SpareBank 1 SMN extends euro senior curve by two years

◆ Fair value estimated ◆ 'No fatigue' despite ongoing supply ◆ Increasing international investor base

Hybrid capital is open to the big US tech companies. But who needs an umbrella when the sun is shining?

The bank has been added to DNB's list of registered covered bond issuers

Issuance will be lower in June as yields rise

Amazon’s Swiss debut and Alphabet’s first yen deal jolted debt markets this week

Artificial intelligence is changing the investment banking game. But banks are divided on whether to cut costs or try and win more deals

The US bank is showing its global credentials at a time of increased transatlantic tensions but European banks are equal to the challenge

International Finance Corp’s drive to introduce development finance to the CLO market is advancing. Its second deal of $509m had more investors, more tranches and better pricing, supporting its rapid growth

Investors were eager to tender their bonds despite initial resistance

Increased investor interest in utilities hybrids could bring down subordination premium, says SSE treasurer

Divisions deepen over multilateral development banks’ climate commitments

◆ UK utility prints €1.3bn dual trancher ◆ Issuer skips guidance as it masses orders north of €10bn ◆ Longer call leg draws stronger demand

Inclusion of a variable rate instrument was not acceptable to official creditors

Markets are looking to the authorities to simplify blockchain issues, but they may not have the purest motives

Several banks are reining in their appetite for warehouse lending

Volatility is on the rise again

Commercial real estate has been one of the hardest hit sectors during the Covid-19 pandemic. The images of shuttered shops and empty offices are almost as emblematic of the Covid crisis as facemasks and stay-at-home warnings. Although there is hope for a recovery in issuance led by the red-hot growth in logistics sites, the outlook is uncertain given that underlying values of many properties backing existing CMBS remain unknown. Sam Kerr reports.

In mid-May GlobalCapital convened representatives of three RMBS issuers with different business models and approaches for a wide-ranging discussion about the state of the UK mortgage markets, funding strategies, and much more. Kensington is the most frequent issuer in European RMBS, with a track record stretching back to 1995, and more than £10bn of assets under management, including about £6bn of servicing mandates. LendInvest and Habito are fintech lenders, with LendInvest originating bridging loans and buy-to-let, funded through securitizations (LendInvest has completed two public deals so far), retail bonds, funds, and private capital, including a £500m partnership with JP Morgan. Habito mixes technology-enabled mortgage broking with its own buy-to-let originations, funded through Citi’s securitization shelf, and has recently launched the first long-term (up to 40 years) fixed rate mortgage product in the UK, funded through a partnership with CarVal Investors.

AstraZeneca, the UK drug company, showed the eager demand for merger and acquisition financings this week when it achieved ultra-tight pricing on a $7bn bond issue to fund its acquisition of US biotech firm Alexion Pharmaceuticals.