UniCredit

Crédit Agricole landed at an extremely tight level on Wednesday morning as it made its social bond debut with a seven year senior non-preferred deal, following in the footsteps of last week's near zero yield print from Svenska Handelsbanken.

The resignation of Jean Pierre Mustier as group CEO on Monday night has laid bare deep fissures between the senior management of UniCredit, which has been focused on serving the interests of shareholders, and members of its board, which want to reposition the bank as a servant of the Italian economy.

BP, the oil major, was joined at the long end of the bond market on Tuesday by railway company Deutsche Bahn, as issuers take advantage of low spreads to stretch out their debt maturities.

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena found plenty of demand for a new senior bond in the euro market on Tuesday, aided by growing speculation about the possibility of a merger with UniCredit.

Jean Pierre Mustier will retire as CEO of UniCredit in April, the bank announced this evening, as the board no longer agrees with his strategy. The change could mean UniCredit pivots towards Italian priorities and political influence.

BP, the UK oil major, and car rental company Sixt have hired banks for new bonds as the end of year issuance window looks set to stretch into next month.

Snam, the Italian gas network company, has reinvigorated the transition bond market, servicing investors unable to buy sustainability-linked bonds.

Italy returned to the private placement market to print one of the year’s largest MTNs on Thursday. The deal stood out this week, since issuance in the market has started to wind down ahead of Christmas.

CPI Property, the Frankfurt listed property owner, has signed a new €700m revolving credit facility, bumping up the size of its main bank line as lenders say liquidity is still a focus for corporates.

Hera, the Italian utility, had the market to itself on Thursday, as corporate bond supply fell. But syndicate desks were split over whether this week’s roaring demand could encourage other opportunistic issuers to the market well into December.

Shopping mall operator Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield priced a €2bn dual tranche bond from €7.2bn of demand on Wednesday, after fixed income investors were left unfazed by its shareholders blocking a rights issue earlier this month.

CNH Industrial, the US-Italian agricultural and construction machinery maker, cruised through the bond market on Tuesday, as bond bankers puzzled over whether the Thanksgiving holiday in the US on Thursday means this will be a short week for issuance.