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Scentre Group (Scentre) (A/A1) returned to sterling issuance on March 31, for the second time since the entity was created in June last year. The follow-up transaction has a notably shorter maturity than the first, a development which highlights a notable change in the UK investment landscape according to issuer and leads.
On April 1, Rentenbank (AAA/Aaa/AAA) priced a new April 2021 Kangaroo bond in what is the issuer's ninth visit to the market in 2015. According to KangaNews data, Rentenbank priced its most recent Kangaroo transaction on March 10. That A$200 million (US$153.2 million) tap to its 2020 line priced at 19 basis points over Australian government bond.
ABN AMRO Bank (ABN AMRO) (A/A2/A+) priced a new benchmark senior-unsecured five-year Australian dollar transaction on April 1. According to KangaNews data, the borrower last visited the Kangaroo market in January 2014. That A$400 million (US$306.1 million) fixed- and A$100 million floating-rate dual-tranche deal had pricing of 135 basis points over semi-quarterly swap and bank bills.
A change in market economics compared with prior norms, and a resurgence of solid issuance conditions, attracted a clutch of Australian-origin issuers to the US 144A market in recent weeks. The latest saw solid demand and keen pricing, although lead managers warn these conditions might be short lived – and recommend issuers prepare to be nimble in their market selection.
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Municipality Finance (MuniFin) (AA+/Aaa) priced an increase to its 2024 Kangaroo on March 31, in what is the issuer's first Australian dollar transaction of the year. According to KangaNews data, MuniFin priced A$310 million (US$238.9 million) in three Kangaroo deals in 2014 having been absent from the market for nearly six years.
The first stage of Australia's tax white paper process suggests the two tax breaks believed to be most responsible for driving local investors away from income assets are both up for discussion. In context, though, the tax discussion paper released by government on March 30 is a wide-ranging document which requests feedback rather than making early recommendations.
The Australian dollar markets saw renewed activity during the last full week of March. The Australian Office of Financial Manangement highlighted a new syndication technique in its 2035 issue while KfW Bankengruppe priced its debut Kangaroo green bond.
Liberty Financial (Liberty) (BBB- by S&P) launched and priced its inaugural senior-unsecured three-year fixed-rate transaction in the domestic market on March 27. The debut follows a series of fixed-income investor meetings which commenced on February 27.
On March 27, Bank of China Sydney Branch (BoC Sydney) (A/A1/A) priced its fourth Australian dollar domestic benchmark transaction, and its first since 2013.
For its Kangaroo green-bond debut, KfW Bankengruppe deployed a different execution approach to that used by Australia's only other green-bond issuer from the supranational, sovereign and agency (SSA) sector. This strategy helped KfW to price A$600 million (US$469.8 million) in its five-year green bond on March 26 – double the volume of any previous Australian dollar deal in this format.