Online articles

• AT1 back in the regulatory crosshairs

  The Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority suspects the major banks’ additional tier-one funding instruments are increasing risk in the sector. The regulator has reopened the debate about the amount of this form of capital in banks’ mix and the appropriateness of AT1 for retail investors.

• Autos proliferate

  The Australian auto lending market is undergoing a similar structural shift to that experienced by the nonprime mortgage lending market a few years ago: a wide-scale withdrawal by bank balance sheets and a proliferation of new and existing nonbank lenders. Auto-backed securitisation issuance is booming as a result.

• Avoiding the Tower of Babel: building a common language for sustainable finance

  When diving into the sustainable finance ecosystem, it is impossible not to come across the term ‘taxonomy’. On the surface it sounds straightforward: it is a classification tool to guide investors, issuers and policymakers on what economic activities are deemed sustainable and suitable for thematic financing. But, says the team at Natixis CIB, it is not all that simple.

• Consistent funding approach still serves mutual banks despite changeable market

  The centrepiece of the KangaNews Mutual Sector Wholesale Funding Seminar is the discussion of funding conditions for the sector and the credit market more generally. In a year that has seen a clutch of significant bank failures offshore – but also notable growth in the capacity available to financial institution issuers in the Australian dollar term debt market – speakers at the 30 August seminar counselled mutual...

• Corporate borrowers endorse Australian market despite issuance slowdown

  Australian dollar corporate issuance has picked up in 2023 but not to anything like the extent of the bonanza of Australian dollar credit supply from financial issuers. KangaNews’s annual survey of Australian and New Zealand corporate borrowers, however, suggests corporates are as engaged as ever with the Australian market – perhaps more so, thanks to a spike in Kiwi issuer interest.

• Global insights: rising India, slowing China and the role of sustainability

  Paul Gruenwald, New York-based chief economist at S&P Global, shared his global insights at the KangaNews New Zealand Debt Capital Market Summit in Auckland in September – taking in regional and global economies, US dollar strength and economic trajectory, and the growing influence of sustainability on economics.

• Inside the mutual bank sector

  The KangaNews Mutual Sector Wholesale Funding Seminar brings together leaders from mutual banks across Australia, to share intelligence on the sector, its competition and growth prospects, and funding options. The 2023 event, hosted on 30 August, featured wide-ranging insights into relevant topics from consolidation to cyber security.

• More than a slogan

  The failure of Australia’s referendum on an Indigenous Voice to parliament has provided plenty of fodder for soul searching and recrimination. It also asks questions about an issue that comes up relatively often in sustainable finance conversations – the concept of ‘corporate leadership’ – and, to take things a step further, once again highlights what happens when we refuse to have difficult societal conversations.

• New Zealand reaches across-the-board inflection points

  The KangaNews New Zealand Debt Capital Market Summit took place in Auckland in September, at a critical juncture for all of the local political, economic, market and environmental transition stories. Conversations at the conference were more wide-ranging than ever, with contributions from the political, business and markets sectors at a moment when the agenda for the coming years is being formed in real time.

• SSA Kangaroo volume passes all-time record but eyes turn to 2024

  Supranational, sovereign and agency issuance in Australian dollars has had a knock-out year, with new supply surpassing an annual record that had stood for nearly a decade and a half. Supply has resumed after a particularly acute mid-year lull, but intermediaries’ attention is now turning to next year as the new-issuance ground looks less fertile in the near term.

• Sustainability infosphere still maturing, investors say

  The annual KangaNews survey of Australasian fixed-income investors’ preferences in the sustainable debt market highlights the development that is still needed on data and information. Investors want various types of information but its availability and quality may be a headwind for further evolution.

• US investment-grade outlook stays solid despite firming recession fears

  While US economic data continue to be resilient, higher energy prices and rising long-term interest rates increase the probability of a US recession in 2024. But even if the outlook weakens, the lingering impact of super-normal liquidity and a structurally tight labour market from the pandemic period could be enough to maintain the function and appeal of the US bond market to global issuers.

• WA builds in sustainability and maintains focus on budget prudence

  Western Australia has a different set of challenges from most of its Australian state peers. While its budget position is the envy of the group, the driver of its recent revenue bonanza – the resources sector – makes for a more difficult path to the low-carbon future. The state’s treasurer, Rita Saffioti, speaks to KangaNews about debt reduction and bond issuance, sustainability goals, migration and how it hopes to...