Coronavirus

Suriname’s sovereign bonds traded up in the wake of last week’s elections, despite doubts over a looming debt payment and even as a candidate who has promised discussions over the country’s rapidly rising debt stock looks to be nearing power.

Each week, the very best of what our newsroom have found most useful, interesting and informative from around the web. This week: what being in charge of a leading reserve currency actually means, how business travel might return, and a power play from Warrington Borough Council.

Features in UK covered bond programmes offer limited protection and could lead to a delay in the classification of defaulted loans, Moody’s said this week. Meanwhile in Europe, regulators have muddied the waters on payment moratoria legislation.

Shares in JDE Peet’s, the coffee company which priced its IPO on Thursday, traded up by over 13% on their first day on the Amsterdam exchange. The rise vindicated the syndicate's decision to accelerate the roadshow on what is predicted will be Europe’s largest listing all year.

The UK Debt Management Office has announced the timing and the banks for its upcoming syndication next month, as it continues to plough through its unprecedented borrowing programme.

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank has hired banks for a renminbi sustainable development bond, its first outing in the Panda market.

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank has approved a $750m loan to the Philippines to help it recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Latin American development bank Corporación Andina de Fomento expects the social bond universe to grow after bringing forward its debut social bond to raise funds for its Covid-19 mitigation efforts.

State-owned oil and gas giant Petrobras finally brought some bond supply from Brazil on Wednesday but, as the new issue traded down on the break, bankers said few Latin American issuers were likely to be persuaded of the benefits of tapping international markets in the short term.

BBVA surprised market participants by becoming the first bank to issue a Covid-19 response bond in Europe this week. There will be follow-on deals as the format catches on in credit markets — high grade corporates are looking to do deals too — but it is unlikely to be exploited as widely as it has been in the SSA market. David Freitas and Mike Turner report.

Private sector involvement in suspending debt servicing for the world's poorest countries to alleviate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic progressed this week, with the Institute of International Finance (IIF) publishing guidelines for such an initiative. But countries face a long and tortuous path to reach tangible relief, write Ross Lancaster and Oliver West.

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has reminded issuers and bankers of rules related to inside information and wall-crossings, as it seeks to make sure standards are upheld in busy markets when participants are working from home.