Greece

Greek covered bond issuers could be ready to return to the market this month, with banks expecting ratings upgrades following an upgrade for the sovereign last week. With the Hellenic Republic attracting strong demand for its 10 year on Tuesday, Greek issuers have the potential to extend their covered bond curves.

Greece mandated banks on Monday for a 10 year syndication, which will be the sovereign’s longest tenor since making its public bond market comeback in 2014.

Rating: B3/B+/BB-

Greece’s impressive return to the public bond markets this week has set the perfect backdrop for further syndication in 2019, which bankers say could be a 10 year, a maturity it has not tested since its 2014 post-bailout comeback. The big bid for eurozone periphery debt could also see Greek and Italian banks sell covered bonds in the near future, according to market participants. Burhan Khadbai and Bill Thornhill report.

Greece has cash. It didn’t need to take €2.5bn of five year bond funding from the capital markets on Tuesday. But the deal was a good tactic to demonstrate that it has access to new capital, which will ultimately push down its borrowing costs and push up its credit ratings. It worked for Portugal, so why not Greece?

Greece’s highly anticipated return to the public bond markets on Tuesday met with a strong reception from investors. With up to €4.5bn more of benchmark bonds to issue in 2019, Greece is expected to return to the markets for a second syndication this year, which bankers say could be in the 10 year part of the curve. Cyprus will look to follow up on Greece’s success after setting out plans to roadshow a euro transaction in February.

Austria, Belgium and Greece went out with mandates for syndications at various parts of the euro curve on Monday, just a day before a crunch vote in the UK Parliament on amendments to prime minster Theresa May’s Brexit plan. But bankers said concerns around Brexit are limited and are no roadblock to sovereign issuance.

Italy hit screens for a 15 year euro benchmark on Monday, in what will be the sovereign’s first syndication for a new issue since agreeing its 2019 budget with the European Commission at the end of last year. Elsewhere in the eurozone periphery, Greece is looking to return to the bond market with a euro syndication in the five year part of the curve, according to bankers.

Greece has begun speaking to its primary dealers as it looks to return to the bond markets for a benchmark issue next year, GlobalCapital understands.

The covered bonds of National Bank of Greece will be eligible for two bond indices and will attract a substantially lower capital charge following Fitch’s recent rating upgrade. At the same time, Helaba tapped its February 2024 and Münchener Hypothekenbank hit the road with plans to issue its first green Pfandbrief.

Piraeus Bank, the largest bank by assets in Greece, said on Thursday that it was monitoring market conditions with a view to raising tier two capital.

The environment for the return of Greece to the euro public market was enhanced following a 10 year benchmark by Cyprus this week that broke a number of records.