Westpac
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Australian banks are going through one of their toughest periods as slowing economic growth and greater regulatory oversight cause them to rethink their business models, especially when it comes to overseas activity. With new CEOs in place at three of the four big lenders, the industry is set for an overhaul. Ben Power reports. -
Upcoming commercial paper regulation has triggered a flurry of MTNs from Australian banks, moving away from an asset class in which they have historically been very active.
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Far from a signal of returning strength in commodities, this week’s iron ore surge was due to freak activity in derivatives markets, an analyst has claimed, since daily futures volumes were equal to the annual output of big iron ore producers.
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Macquarie issued its inaugural covered bond on Thursday, meeting a strong reception with the five year €500m paper twice subscribed by investors. Westpac has also opened books on a $1.35bn deal, as Fitch said it expects Australian covered bond issuance to rise this year.
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Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) issued a five year Aussie dollar floater on Wednesday, attracting strong demand from Australian and Asian investors.
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A $975m refinancing for India’s Reliance Industries has opened for general syndication via 13 mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners.
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Westpac New Zealand launched an eight year Swiss franc deal on Friday, making it the second international issuer in the market this week.
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Westpac NZ launched a sterling senior bond on Wednesday and Santander UK will soon follow with a debut holdco deal, as FIG's first signs of life in 2016 favour the UK market.
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Market participants believe the FIG primary market has seen its last deal of the year, with banks now positioning themselves for the busy January supply window and next week’s expected US rate hike.
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Activity in the covered bond market had been expected to slow down but instead it has been surprisingly busy this week, with as many as three euro benchmarks surfacing over the first three days.
