UK

Several investors have told GlobalCapital of their concern for the outlook of UK universities as borrowers. They worry that the spread of coronavirus will hit revenues, lower the demand from international students and may in the end hasten a shift towards remote learning.

Insolvency and restructuring practitioners have been catapulted into an unprecedented whirlwind of activity by the coronavirus, as even healthy companies suddenly find themselves staring over a financial precipice. In the UK, the government will change insolvency rules to ease these situations, but specialists believe there is more to be gained by using existing laws better.

Royal Bank of Canada on Wednesday became the fourth Canadian bank to issue an Australian dollar covered bond in April, pricing considerably tighter than its compatriots and in the largest size yet. The success the Canadians have enjoyed in Kangaroos is in stark contrast to a sterile sterling market.

The wave of UK corporates going to equity markets to raise capital to offset Covid-19 volatility is set to continue this week according to sources. On Tuesday, Hyve Group, the London-listed organiser of exhibitions and conferences, said it was looking at a possible deal.

BNP Paribas and Crédit Agricole have become the first euro area banks to launch senior bonds for nearly two months. They joined UBS in the euro market on Tuesday, taking advantage of a recent rally in credit spreads across the sector.

Vesuvius, the UK listed ceramics engineer, is marketing a US private placement, according to market sources.

Gilt market participants are expecting UK government borrowing to explode to close to £300bn this year. However, despite the huge supply, the Bank of England’s buying programme will prove even bigger and maintain price tension. To further ease the strain on cashflows, the Bank of England is expanding its Ways and Means Facility for the short-term.

Supermarket Income Reit, the UK real estate investment trust focused on supermarkets, has unveiled a £75m fundraising to finance new investment opportunities that may arise from the Covid-19 crisis, which had caused UK grocers to be inundated with demand.

Official financial lifelines to keep UK companies alive through the coronavirus pandemic are already having a tangible effect. Shares in Redrow, the UK housebuilder, rose 7.5% on Thursday morning after it announced it had been approved to borrow up to £300m from the Bank of England’s commercial paper facility for investment grade companies.

The Restaurant Group, the owner of numerous UK dining brands including Wagamama and Frankie & Benny's, raised £57m through an equity raise on Wednesday night to see it through what it expects to be a long period of Covid-19 lockdown with all its restaurants closed until June.

EMEA equity capital markets have reopened in dramatic style as companies rush to raise emergency funds at a time of maximum uncertainty because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Companies are being urged to act quickly in case market confidence evaporates again as the deadly disease continues to spread, write Sam Kerr and Aidan Gregory.

The UK Debt Management Office (DMO) and local councils should sell social bonds to help tackle the Covid-19 crisis, said a director for responsible investment at a large asset manager.