Corp Bonds - Swiss franc

Switzerland’s largest private and commercial vehicle leasing company starred in an otherwise quiet market for Swiss franc issuance this week.

When the Mont-Soleil solar power plant went into operation in early 1992 it was not just the first of its kind in Switzerland: it was the largest photovoltaic installation in Europe.

Well over Sfr1bn ($1bn) of Pfandbriefe and covered bonds was printed within three days this week, rounding off what bankers say turned out to be a surprisingly good first half of the year for the Swissie market.

Activity in the FIG sector in Swiss francs shifted from the international to the domestic market this week, with a little over Sfr850m ($857m) of new supply priced on Tuesday alone.

Korea Railroad Corp turned west on Monday, marketing a six year bond to Swiss investors.

It has been a lively start to the second quarter of the year in Swiss franc bonds, marked by geographical diversity in the international sector and a welcome appearance from an industrial borrower in the domestic market.

Swiss franc investors leapt headlong into the Brexit turbulence on Thursday morning, giving a solid reception to the first Swissie deal of the year from a UK corporate borrower.

The virtual drought in international corporate issuance in the Swiss franc market belatedly came to an end on Tuesday in spectacular fashion, when BMW launched a speedily executed two-tranche issue for Sfr600m ($600m).

Korea Western Power (Kowepo) chose an appropriate week to launch the first ever green bond in Swiss francs from an emerging market issuer – and not just because sustainability was high on the agenda at Davos. The deal also came in a week in which representatives from the IFC and the Swiss Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) met in Bern to discuss the results of a consultation on impact investing among more than 100 members of the Association of Swiss Sustainable Finance (SSF).

Zurich-based syndicate heads entered the new year cautiously optimistic about the outlook for Swiss franc bond issuance in 2019.

As central banks retreat from public markets, spreads are widening in dollars and euros, and cross-currency basis swaps are improving for international borrowers, Swiss bankers believe the good times might be returning to a market once known the world over for diversification and arbitrage.

Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), the Kazakh state-owned rail company, sold Sfr150m five year Swiss franc bonds on Tuesday, in choppy market conditions.