Switzerland

Pfandbriefzentrale der schweizerischen Kantonalbanken issued Sfr484m (Eu319.4m) of paper yesterday (Wednesday) at levels bankers said harked back to the good old days.

UBS has set up a covered bond programme to enable it to tap "an attractive medium to long term source of financing", the Swiss bank announced today (Tuesday).

Compagnie de Financement Foncier launched the first publicly placed 10 year covered bond in Swiss francs for a non-domestic issuer in more than a year on Thursday.

Pfandbriefbank schweizerischer Hypothekarinstitute raised Sfr1.346bn yesterday (Tuesday), the most it has ever raised in a single day, tapping three bonds via Credit Suisse.

Pfandbriefbank schweizerischer Hypothekarinstitute has executed the fourth private placement brokered by the Swiss National Bank to help Credit Suisse and UBS raise funding.

Pfandbriefbank schweizerischer Hypothekarinstitute tapped an April 2013 bond for Sfr216m this (Monday) morning via Credit Suisse. It came at 3.5bp through mid-swaps, 1.5bp inside the bookbuilding level.

Hypo Investmentbank issued a Sfr150m November 2012 covered bond through Credit Suisse yesterday (Monday) at a spread of 42bp over swaps, in a deal that enabled it to match Swiss franc assets in its cover pool.

The Swiss National Bank this (Thursday) morning congratulated itself on the success of its covered bond purchase programme, which could hold clues as to how other central bank schemes might work.

Covered bonds are edging their way back into the Swiss franc market. As well as an appearance from Pfandbriefbank schweizerischer Hypothekarinstitute, Landesbank Baden-Württemberg sold a public sector Pfandbrief this week and Swedbank is bookbuilding for a mortgage-backed covered bond.

Pfandbriefbank schweizerischer Hypothekarinstitute set the size of its September 2016 tap at Sfr309m yesterday (Thursday) afternoon and priced it at 3bp over mid-swaps, a level made possible by the Swiss National Bank’s intervention in its domestic covered bond market.

In brief: Pfandbriefbank schweizerischer Hypothekarinstitute is tapping its September 2016 2.25% bond this afternoon via Credit Suisse.

BNP Paribas sold a Sfr275m (Eu183m) September 2014 covered bond yesterday (Monday) at a spread of 75bp over mid-swaps, the tight end of 75bp-80bp guidance. It was the first public mortgage-backed covered bond in the Swiss franc foreign market since September and the largest in over a year.