UK

Santander’s head of private placements has resigned from the bank.

Institutional investors are weighing up governance at elite UK private schools after a series of serious sexual assault allegations emerged from the sector. As certain private schools look for new deals to add to the £500m they have already raised, investors are focusing on how schools have handled the ensuing crisis.

Italian asset manager Anima Holding sold €300m of senior debt against a quiet backdrop this week, having decided to target the popular seven year tenor.

The University of Surrey has issued a US private placement, according to market sources, less than a month after King’s College, London returned to the market. Institutional investors are regaining confidence in the UK’s higher education sector, after a year in which revenues shrank and student intake became uncertain.

Lloyds Bank has appointed a senior banker to lead a new 16 strong team structuring environmental, social and governance products and services for companies in the UK, and plans to hire further staff externally.

Montea, the real estate investment trust in Belgium, has sold €235m of green US private placements. The deal is the latest in a succession green trades to hit the market.

Aviva has asked investors to agree to a change in the terms of three of its tier two bonds, to try and make sure they revert to spreads over Sonia rather than Libor if they live on past their first call dates.

Although UK covered bonds are trading at their tightest levels for the last year, they still offer a decent pick-up versus some international peers. With the UK’s vaccine rollout and growth expectations showing promise, spreads may well tighten. But there is a lack of fresh supply. Some is needed to improve price discovery and catalyse performance.

UK specialist insurer Pension Insurance Corporation has appointed Macquarie to manage money on its behalf, focusing on private placements from US borrowers.

UniCredit swept away the Landesbanks in the Schuldschein market last quarter to claim pole position so far this year, with an arranging market share of nearly 20%.

Berlin Hyp has this week become the first financial institution to issue a sustainability-linked bond. Market participants were divided over whether the structure helped the issuer to achieve better deal terms, but the innovative trade will give other banks an important example to follow.

Cambridge-based cybersecurity company Darktrace has kicked off its long-awaited IPO on the London Stock Exchange, having announced its intention to publish a registration document on Monday morning.