Norway

Eika Boligkreditt and Oma Savings Bank found good demand for their covered bonds sold on Tuesday with small deal sizes, environmental appeal and European Central Bank providing a boost. Even so, syndicate bankers were not convinced the market was back to full health.

Eika Boligkreditt has mandated joint leads for a 10 year and its first green covered bond under its newly established green framework. At the same time, Bank of New Zealand plans a seven year benchmark and Finland's Oma Savings Bank intends to tap its outstanding six year deal.

DNB Boligkreditt and Sparebank 1 Boligkreditt (Spabol) issued deals flat to their curves with strong demand this week, while Bawag brought the first Austrian transaction through mid-swaps in almost three years.

Sparebank 1 Boligkreditt (Spabol) priced a €1bn 10 year Norwegian covered bond flat to fair value on Thursday with demand of more than €2bn, showing, once again, the effect of investor demand in an environment of unprecedented negative net supply.

DNB Boligkreditt issued a €1bn seven year covered bond at flat to fair value with strong demand on Wednesday, providing encouragement for Sparebank 1 Boligkreddit (Spabol) which mandated leads for a follow-on 10 year Norwegian covered bond.

DNB Boligkreditt took advantage of strong market conditions to mandate leads for its second covered bond of the year on Tuesday.

Equity investors showed they were stepping up in numbers to invest in primary growth capital raises across Europe after Elkem, the Norwegian silicone manufacturer, raised $228m-equivalent and Greek bank Piraeus completed a €1.38bn raise to help clean up its non-performing loan book.

Three banks jumped into the euro senior market after the Easter break on Tuesday, benefitting from stable demand and printing with low new issue concessions.

Out of the ashes of Norwegian Air Shuttle has risen a new low-cost Norwegian transatlantic carrier, Norse Atlantic. The airline is seeking to raise Nkr1.27bn ($149m) to pick up the transatlantic routes that its beleaguered predecessor has abandoned.

This week's scorecard looks at the progress Nordic agencies have made in their funding programmes in early March.

SR Boligkreditt issued its largest and longest covered bond on Wednesday, at the tightest spread it has achieved in more than three years, slightly inside fair value.

Hypo Tirol Bank has mandated leads to roadshow its first social covered bond and SR Boligkreditt has mandated leads for a vanilla deal. Both issuers plan on following printing 10 year deals, where yields are almost positive.