UK

HICL Infrastructure Co, the UK infrastructure fund advised by InfraRed Capital Partners, has refinanced its £400m ($556m) revolving credit facility and managed to negotiate cheaper funding from its banking group.

Investors who financed bearish European equity positions with US short volatility strategies have been burned as the S&P 500 continued its downward trend on Monday, and realised volatility spiked.

Some loans bankers are looking forward to a wave of consolidation in the telecoms sector, as Vodafone said it was in talks with Virgin Media owner Liberty Global to buy some of the US company’s European assets.

Anglo-Dutch consumer goods company Unilever has become known in the corporate bond markets for its multiple tranche deals. On Monday it announced its third such trade in the last three years and investors showed they still have plenty of appetite for the name, helping the company print its largest ever deal.

Despite the latest bout of negative publicity surrounding it having used monkeys in emission tests lingering in the press, investors were still keen to buy Volkswagen’s new sterling corporate bond on Friday. The German car maker got over £500m of orders for the 4.5 year fixed rate deal.

Borrowers issuing sterling bonds with speculative grade ratings should find a receptive market despite the potential fallout of Brexit this year, Moody’s said in a report. It was a sentiment bankers and investors agreed with.

Just Group, the UK insurer, met with very strong demand of more than £1.1bn for a £230m tier three bond in the sterling market on Thursday.

Issuer Rating: Aaa/AAA

The two 100 year corporate bonds previously sold in the sterling market had received excellent responses and, when London-based charity the Wellcome Trust became the latest member of the century club this week, it proved that investors' demand for ultra long bonds is far from satisfied.

The chief strategy officer of Eurex Clearing, Matthias Graulich, has dismissed claims that euro interest rate swap clearing costs would increase substantially if moved to the EU 27 from London, noting that liquidity indicators for the product are already improving at Eurex.

The Wellcome Trust charity is a fine institution. The medical research it has funded will benefit the world for many years. This week it helped fund that work by selling a £750m 100 year bond. The investors who bought it probably have a warm glow inside knowing they have helped the cause. But is it responsible to buy bonds that will redeem in 2118?

Audley Group, the UK builder of luxury retirement villages, has signed a £125m revolving credit line as it follows up a 2017 equity raising as part of an “aggressive growth strategy”.