UniCredit

Credit analysts at JP Morgan are urging investors to swap their euro bond holdings for similar deals in dollars, where they say there are ‘attractive opportunities to position for convergence’.

An impressive rally in Italian risk assets has been completely overturned this week, as Italy descended into political chaos. Some market participants now fear a repeat of last year, when Italian issuers were frozen out of debt and equity markets as the country’s government fought with the European Commission over its annual budget targets. Tyler Davies and Sam Kerr report.

With no major new issues in sight, the high yield bond market has been dominated by the news of troubled businesses struggling to come up with credible turnaround plans.

ZF Friedrichshafen is targeting the end of August to launch its grand return to the Schuldschein market, according to people with knowledge of the situation. The German car parts maker’s €2.2bn issue in November 2014 is the biggest deal the market has ever seen but a bigger deal may be on the way.

UniCredit has picked an internal candidate to be its global head of natural resources, choosing Eriks Atvars, currently global head of structured trade and export finance (STEF).

UniCredit has hired a new head of trading for sovereigns, supranationals and agencies to its European government bond trading desk in Milan.

Germany’s Dürr has signed a €750m sustainability-linked loan using blockchain technology, as the mechanical and plant engineering firm continues its push into sustainability refinancing that started with a green Schuldschein.

Fabrizio Saccomanni, chair of UniCredit, has died at the aged of 76.

Axel Springer's shareholders have given a green light to a public-to-private takeover offer from KKR, which values the German media company at €6.7bn.

Corporate borrowing activity is expected to be sustained throughout the second half of the year as borrowers "take advantage" of the liquidity in the loan market. The expectation comes in the aftermath of two large dividend recapitalisation transactions by Polish corporates, Allegro and Żabka, in the second quarter.

Hungarian gas and oil company MOL has extended part of an existing €555m revolving credit facility by one year, in what is one of the few sparks of activity in the country's syndicated loan market so far this year.

UniCredit is to launch two exchange-traded funds on indices that combine a factor strategy with environmental, social and governance considerations.