Rabobank

Navigating the covered bond market will not be without its challenges in 2020. The Targeted Longer Term Refinancing Operation (TLTRO), European Central Bank deposit tiering and the Covered Bond Purchase Programme have collectively distorted the market, but added to this concoction is the impact of negative interest rates. Against this backdrop issuers, investors and investment bankers gathered in Munich in November to discuss the outlook for covered bonds. It is likely that new issue premiums will gradually tighten, but the path is unlikely to be smooth. January is typically the busiest month, but in 2019, issuers that funded this early paid the highest spreads. And, with the ECB expected to buy in the region of €4.5bn covered bonds a month, issuers will not feel compelled to move early. But the ECB monetary policy has unwelcome implications. Covered bonds have begun to lose value against government bonds, and this will extend if the ECB is unable to loosen restrictions on government bond purchases.

Foreign and domestic banks flocked to the UK this week as they sought to take advantage of stellar funding conditions in the sterling market. Bankers said this was the first chance issuers had to benefit from opportunities in the currency following December’s general election, which removed a lot of short-term uncertainty around Brexit.

ABN Amro and Deutsche Bank opened books on new senior deals in the sterling bond market, with bankers recognising that the currency is 'working very well' for international names.

BNP Paribas and Danske Bank were looking to raise non-preferred senior debt in the sterling market on Tuesday, with the cost of funding in the currency having fallen into line with euro pricing levels.

Rabobank opened books on its first ever non-preferred senior deal in sterling on Monday, as it sought to take advantage of a general lack of a supply in the currency over the course of the last couple of months.

TrailStone Group, the gas and power trader and investor based in London, has closed the year with a €150m revolving credit facility, which complies with the Green Loan Principles.

Spreads in the financial institutions bond market have tightened as investors pack their bags for the Christmas holiday period, but bankers warn that this does not necessarily reflect how conditions will look in the new year.

European banks no longer really have to think about building up layers of additional tier one debt. All of the focus has shifted to managing and refreshing this capital layer, and taking full advantage of a ferocious hunt for yield. Tyler Davies reports

For public sector issuers, niche currency deals have offered attractive opportunities for arbitrage funding, with spreads into euros and dollars spurring on demand this year. Meanwhile, strong investor appetite for green paper has seen niche shoots blossom throughout 2019. Frank Jackman reports

Navigating the covered bond market will not be without its challenges in 2020. The Targeted Longer Term Refinancing Operation (TLTRO), European Central Bank deposit tiering and the Covered Bond Purchase Programme have collectively distorted the market, but added to this concoction is the impact of negative interest rates. Against this backdrop issuers, investors and investment bankers gathered in Munich in November to discuss the outlook for covered bonds. It is likely that new issue premiums will gradually tighten, but the path is unlikely to be smooth. January is typically the busiest month, but in 2019, issuers that funded this early paid the highest spreads. And, with the ECB expected to buy in the region of €4.5bn covered bonds a month, issuers will not feel compelled to move early. But the ECB monetary policy has unwelcome implications. Covered bonds have begun to lose value against government bonds, and this will extend if the ECB is unable to loosen restrictions on government bond purchases.

Activity is set to heat up in the additional tier one (AT1) bond market in 2020, with as many as 22 bonds approaching their first call dates. Market participants appear confident that conditions will allow banks to refinance and incentivise them to do so.

The fight to influence the way in which EU lawmakers implement the final Basel financial rules is heating up towards the end of 2019, with lobbyists tussling over the potential impact on the European banking sector.