Greece

Market sources said rising political uncertainty in the eurozone was to blame for the second deal pulled from the European high yield bond market so far in May, as Greek issuer Pangaea cancelled its high yield roadshow on Thursday.

Covered bond investors would be better off ensuring a full recovery and maturity extension than accepting a partial recovery and claiming the remainder from the insolvency estate of the issuer, according to delegates who voted at the IMN conference in London on Tuesday.

Piraeus Bank's Project Amoeba is one of the first secured Greek NPL portfolios to hit the market, and will serve as a crucial benchmark for pricing on the remaining €100bn of NPLs to come. Meanwhile, the other major banks are selling unsecured books.

The State of North Rhine-Westphalia showed that the euro long end is open for core SSAs despite wider market volatility on Thursday, but there was a more testing time for Greece in secondary.

Greece’s return to capital markets last week drew nothing but praise on the day, but its subsequent performance in the secondary market has left something to be desired, said bankers.

Rating: Caa2/B/B-

Despite heavy volatility in the equity markets, in fixed income, public sector bond issuers had an excellent week. A cool €10bn hit the market in tenors from five to 15 years and from all parts of the spectrum within the asset class. Lewis McLellan reports.

After being sidelined by volatility in the equity market this week, Greece made it to market on Thursday with a €3bn seven year.

A battering in the US stock market sent ripples through financial markets on Monday and Tuesday but, with stability returning, investors are keen to put money to work while higher yields are available. But one opportunity to do so was snatched away from them on Tuesday.

Greece, which on Monday announced its intention to sell a seven year, kept away from markets because of wide swings in European govvie spreads — a decision lauded by bankers away from the transaction. Dimitris Tsakonas, head of funding at the Greece's Public Debt Management Agency, spoke to GlobalCapital.

Since Greece’s debt exchange operation in November, market participants have been expecting a return either at three years or seven years. Monday’s mandate brought the answer.

Alpha Bank was inundated with demand for its debut covered bond, benefiting from a series of positive credit events that have boosted the Greek sovereign, thereby enabling the issuer to print a considerably longer benchmark at a lower yield than its peers — and with much more demand.