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Having priced its privately placed residential mortgage-backed securities debut, Basecorp Finance says it sees good opportunities for further growth in New Zealand’s nonbank lending sector and intends to build a presence in public capital markets.

Resimac’s first residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) foray for 2021 showcased the consistency with which it approaches funding markets, the borrower says. It also helped set internal pricing to maintain competitiveness in the hotly contested prime-mortgage origination market.

China’s ban on Australian coal has been one of the largest shocks to the industry in recent months. Nonetheless, Aurizon Operations received strong investor support for its transaction – albeit at a significantly wider price point to its triple-B rated peers.

AusNet Services Holdings printed a euro hybrid deal on 2 March which exceeded demand and pricing expectations. The borrower has a strong presence among euro investors that allowed the focus during execution to be on deal specifics rather than issuer credit – and paved the way for a jumbo book, leads say.

The Australian sovereign and semi-government bond market faced game-changing challenges in 2020. Greatly increased issuance requirements seem baked in for the foreseeable future, but those most responsible for distributing and trading the bonds appear relatively confident that – despite resumed volatility in late February – the market is set up well for the pandemic end game.

Afterpay printed a blockbuster convertible bond on 26 February with a zero coupon and 45 per cent discount to the conversion price. Afterpay’s leads say issuance of convertibles by Australian companies has been in a relative purple patch and the latest deal should further stimulate interest – though they do not expect a convertible-bond deluge.

The Reserve Bank of Australia kept all its policy measures on hold at its March monetary policy decision, despite markets turmoil over the preceding weeks. The reserve bank has taken the opportunity to act flexibly within its mandate but does not appear to be excessively concerned about the market activity – which has centred on a significant bond sell-off.

The KangaNews Market People of the Year are the individuals who voters in the KangaNews Awards 2020 believe went above and beyond their roles to contribute to the development of the Australian and New Zealand debt markets. There are no restrictions on the firms, positions or seniority of winners – voters are simply asked to consider who contributed most to the market in either or both 2020 specifically or across the span of a career.

Australian fund managers, strategists and traders remain sceptical of the apparent rationale behind a bond sell-off that has seen local long-end yield spike after creeping higher in previous months. The price move appears to reflect greater inflation expectations and an interest rate hike before the Reserve Bank Australia’s forecast of 2024, but there is some evidence that it is not being backed by substantial repositioning activity.

In its debut issuance, Charter Hall LWR printed the tightest spreads for seven- and 10-year tenors by a triple-B rated corporate since at least the financial crisis. Lead managers say conditions remain well set for corporate borrowers planning to issue debt in Australia.

New Zealand became the only sovereign rated by S&P Global Ratings to be upgraded since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, on 22 February. The one-notch upgrade – to AAA – was driven by the country’s effective response to the pandemic and also improves the rating of related government agencies and local councils.

Nearly a year since the Australian Office of Financial Management (AOFM) deployed its first investment from the Australian Business Securitisation Fund (AOFM), the government debt-management agency is seeking to reinvigorate its mandate to develop the SME financing market. COVID-19 forced a focus on emergency liquidity mechanisms and put the ABSF on hold, but the AOFM believes the experience may now allow it to fast-track its longer-term ABSF aims.