Belgium

Xtrion, the majority shareholder of Belgian semi-conductor company Melexis, sold 1.4m shares in Melexis on Tuesday night. The sale was part of an overall 1.7m package sold to investors in order to increase the Belgian firm's freefloat in the hope that it will join the country's benchmark stock indices.

Belfius Bank is looking to amend the terms and conditions of one of its tier twos so that it can remain eligible for the minimum requirements for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL). The bond was issued with risk factor language under English law but will now need to be updated to reflect the UK’s departure from the EU.

Belgian football club Club Brugge is teeing up an IPO on Euronext Brussels that will see the side join the small ranks of listed European football clubs.

Trading levels given are bid-side spreads versus mid-swaps and/or an underlying benchmark and bid-yields from the close of business on Monday, February 8. The source for secondary trading levels is ICE Data Services.

Three eurozone sovereigns all extended their euro curves with huge order books for syndicated transactions this week in a sign of rampant investor appetite for long-dated debt.

Belfius Bank and Santander found strong support among bank treasury investors in the euro market this week, helping them to print new preferred senior deals at very low yields.

Banco Santander has followed Belfius Bank in launching a very successful new seven year bond this week, as bank treasury accounts lend their support to low yielding preferred senior paper.

Warehouse De Pauw (WDP), the Belgian operator of logistics sites and warehouses, raised €200m in an overnight equity block trade on Wednesday.

Portugal mandated banks on Tuesday to lead the sale of a new 30 year bond as it looks to pounce on the strong investor appetite in the long end of the euro curve.

Investors clamouring at a chance to diversify helped Argenta Spaarbank’s debut benchmark euro covered bond price close to where bonds from established Belgian issuers trade when it was issued on Tuesday.

Belfius Bank took advantage of a quiet market to issue a seven year senior preferred transaction on Monday which attracted exceptionally strong demand from bank treasuries buying for their liquidity portfolios, where demand competes with negative yielding covered bonds.

Argenta Spaarbank has mandated leads to issue its debut covered bond deal. The mandate follows the National Bank of Belgium's decision to grant it a covered bond licence, taking the number of issuers in the country to five, boosting the prospects for supply this year.