UK

Skipton Building Society found a window to launch its debut non-preferred senior bond in the sterling market on Friday, ahead of what could be a tricky fourth quarter for UK borrowers.

The Co-operative Bank is looking to buy back any and all of its only outstanding covered bond, as it repositions its funding structure for central bank money and the minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL).

Hammerson, the UK property company, completed its £552m rights issue with a 94.9% take-up for existing shareholders. The remaining shares were sold to investors on Friday morning in an accelerated placement.

Hipgnosis Songs Fund, the London-listed investment trust focused on music royalties, has concluded its latest share sale, raising £190m, less than its £250m original target.

Icelandic state owned energy company Landsvirkjun has sold $150m of US private placements under its green finance framework.

China Yangtze Power has raised $1.8bn from a smaller-than-expected offer of Global Depositary Receipts in London, sealing only the third listing through the London-Shanghai Stock Connect scheme.

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Equity capital markets investors are likely to face a stream of companies asking them for fresh capital to get them through the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, as cases spike again in continental Europe and the UK, writes Sam Kerr. Some will be asking for the second time — or very late.

The new jobs support scheme unveiled on Thursday by Rishi Sunak, the UK chancellor of the exchequer, will add a minimal cost to the Treasury’s finances and be much cheaper than the coronavirus furlough package, according to analysts. All eyes now are on how the coronavirus pandemic plays out in the coming months, which could bring a much bigger cost.

New research from analysts at Helaba points to a flight to safety in the Schuldschein market over the course of 2020. Rated issuers are making up a bigger share of deals than they have for a decade, and there have been next to no debuts. Schuldschein arrangers hope this conservative trend does not continue into 2021.

Diploma, the UK maker of seals, wiring and healthcare equipment, got solid support from its shareholders and new investors as it raised £194m of equity on Wednesday to complete the acquisition of a US cable distributor.

Informa, the UK publishing and events business, has said it is considering paying back its private debt placements and issuing bonds instead. Companies tend to avoid early repayment in the PP market because of the cost of makewhole payments, but several market sources said Informa was trying to extricate itself from financial covenants.