Rabobank

Ukrainian grain and sunflower producer Kernel is set to amend and extend an existing syndicated loan, according to bankers familiar with the deal. The transaction marks one of the few intermittent spots of activity in the Ukrainian loan market.

Two near-investment grade industrials made a splash in the high yield bond market on Monday, with both Smurfit Kappa and Thyssenkrupp getting their order books oversubscribed multiple times.

Rabobank launched an additional tier one (AT1) bond with a record low coupon in the euro market this week. The Dutch bank started with price thoughts of 3.625%, but tightened by 40bp to smash through the previous record of 3.5%, set by Nordea in 2017.

The financial institutions bond market reopened following the summer break this week, with many issuers rushing to frontload supply before the European Central Bank’s meeting in September. But the market quickly ran into resistance from investors, as they pushed back against the glut of deals.

Market participants expect more banks will now want to print Kangaroos after investors on a search for yield poured into UBS's additional tier one (AT1) deal on Tuesday. The syndication, which surprised those involved after it managed to shave 75bp off its initial pricing guidance and attract A$4bn ($2.71bn) of orders, suggested a market ripe for a deal spree.

UK bank debt has been having a hard time this week, with spreads gapping out by about 15bp on fears that the country could crash out of the European Union without a deal.

UBS and Citi trader Tom Hayes was jailed for 11 years for manipulating Libor. But while the trader argued that he was made a scapegoat for the financial crisis, perhaps the rate he rigged is a bigger victim.

As the market prepares for Libors to end their run as the world’s most prevalent reference rates, there is growing support for the benchmarks to be reprieved.

Budweiser Brewing Co Apac was set to price its multi-billion-dollar Hong Kong IPO at the bottom of guidance on Thursday, according to a banker on the deal.

Dredging and Maritime Management, a Luxembourg-based company, is the latest borrower to have refinanced its bank debt with green financing, having agreed a €550m deal with lenders.

Ghana Cocoa Board, known as Cocobod, is likely to close its annual loan refinancing in September, and bankers expect it to have tight margins.

Rabobank has appointed Ian Baggott from the Loan Market Association to lead its Asia capital markets team, effective in August.