UK

One of the biggest snowstorms to hit Ottawa in years could not stop Export Development Canada printing its largest ever deal this week, alongside a record three year book for the European Investment Bank (EIB) and a very healthy Bank of England (BoE) dollar deal.

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust has launched a £371m block trade to sell its remaining stake in UK financial services firm Standard Life Aberdeen, with the deal covered in under half an hour.

Investors have given a rapturous reception for companies raising equity capital to undertake mergers and acquisitions, given the quiet elsewhere in ECM.

UK media company Future has signed a £90m revolver and an infrastructure project is attracting continental demand, as European banks still show strong interest into sterling-denominated transactions despite the uncertainty around Brexit headed into Thursday’s parliamentary debate.

Grŵp Cynefin, a housing association that manages properties in north Wales, has issued an inaugural sterling debt private placement.

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Greencoat UK Wind, the UK infrastructure fund focused on wind farm development, has completed a £131m capital increase early after investor demand for the offer swelled.

A strong start to the year for public sector dollar issuance is keeping up the pace so far this week, with last week’s slowdown during the Chinese New Year holidays only appearing to make investors hungrier. Both of Tuesday’s dollar deals were well oversubscribed — one spectacularly so — and there is a full card of issuers waiting to come on Wednesday.

UK department store chain Debenhams has agreed a refinancing with its existing lenders, giving it an extra 12 months and an extra £40m of headroom, along with certain covenant waivers — but the race is on for a full recapitalisation by the end of the second quarter.

GB Group, the UK-based data intelligence firm, won strong approval from investors for its strategic acquisition of IDology, a US company that provides ID verification and fraud detection services.

Highgate School is marketing a US private placement (US PP), according to two US PP players. The market has become a home for private and public schools looking for long term financing.

Dozens, the latest digital banking offering, aims to revolutionise retail banking in favour of the customer, by routing returns back to depositors and avoiding most unsecured consumer lending. Is this an unworkable goal, or is founder Aritra Chakravarty on to something?