News
Until 2019, Bluestone Group (Bluestone)’s transactions were largely designed with Australian and New Zealand investors in mind. However, a move to issue in line with Capital Requirement Directives-IV (CRD-IV) regulation means Bluestone’s first residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) deal of the new calendar year garnered record volume and brought with it increased offshore investor recognition and participation, issuer and leads say.
BWP Trust issued in the Australian domestic market for a third time on 4 April, printing a seven-year deal that was heavily oversubscribed. There have been other pure corporate domestic deals at this maturity in 2019 and even though BWP Trust’s volume outcome was modest in comparison, deal sources insist other factors, including price, were as noteworthy.
A day after the 2 April presentation of the Australian federal government’s budget for 2019/20, the Australian Office of Financial Management (AOFM) revealed that is expects to issue A$58 billion (US$41 billion) of Treasury bonds in the coming financial year – up by A$4 billion on 2018/19. At the same time, the government debt-management agency plans to issue just A$2.5 billion of inflation-linked bonds in 2019/20 – down from A$5.9 billion this year.
Toyota Finance Australia (Toyota Australia) priced its largest-ever euro deal on 1 April. The issuer says an increased funding task since entering into a global partnership with Mazda Motor Corporation is leading it to lean more on offshore markets and is also seeing it consider public issuance in alternative asset classes.
New Zealand’s environmental, social and governance (ESG)-themed bond market took another giant leap on 28 March, with the pricing of Housing New Zealand (Housing NZ)’s debut sustainability bond. The deal nearly doubles the total size of the New Zealand ESG-themed market and drove investor diversity and a positive pricing outcome for the issuer.
MUFG Bank Auckland Branch (MUFG Auckland) priced its inaugural New Zealand dollar deal on 27 March. A growing New Zealand dollar balance sheet led to the decision to seek domestic funding, according to the issuer, while leads insist the credit occupies an attractive space in New Zealand’s financial-institution (FI) landscape.
Peet came to the market for its fourth debt capital market transaction on 26 March, with the issuer raising capital to position itself for opportunities that it believes may arise as a result of a property market sell-off. The deal’s lead says the nonrated corporate market continues to provide attractive opportunities for issuers and investors.
Two Australian corporate borrowers accessed the euro market in the week beginning 18 March. Deal sources say Telstra Corporation (Telstra) and Scentre Group (Scentre) took advantage of the euro’s current status as the most competitive global funding option for Australian issuers to price 10-year deals, each with negative new-issue concessions.
Australia welcomed its newest high-grade borrower and first programmatic social-bond issuer on 21 March, when National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation (NHFIC) priced its debut transaction. Leads say attractive credit fundamentals led to a well oversubscribed transaction supplemented by incremental demand from the social aspect.
The individuals recognised as the KangaNews Market People of the Year in the KangaNews Awards 2018 were revealed for the first time at the KangaNews Awards Gala Dinner in Sydney on 19 March. The individual categories in the KangaNews Awards were open to participants across the Australasian debt markets.
To coincide with the launch of a new credit income trust by Perpetual Investments (Perpetual), Michael Korber, head of credit and fixed income, and Anne Moal, senior high-yield analyst at Perpetual in Sydney, share their views on the state of play in the fixed-income market. The new trust provides investors with monthly income by investing in a diversified pool of credit and fixed-income assets.
New Zealand Local Government Funding Agency (LGFA) undertook its first-ever syndicated transaction on 12 March. The deal represents a change in strategy for the borrower, which deal sources say allows it better to engage domestic and offshore investors seeking larger allocations – an outcome that was evident in the record volume achieved.