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Kaupthing Bank (Aa3/A) – the biggest of the three Icelandic-based banks with international operations – may choose 2007 as the year to enter the Kangaroo market.

Increased use of covenant protection could be an end result of the increased threat of private equity-fueled leveraged buyouts of financial institutions, credit analysts say.

Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS) (AA-/Aa2/AA) priced its first Kangaroo on April 20, coming to market with a 10-year non-call five A$600 million (US$498.9 million) subordinated lower Tier II offering.

Following the pricing of Swiss Re’s inaugural Kangaroo on April 20 – a  T1 perpetual non-call 10 issue – joint lead arranger and joint bookrunner Westpac Institutional Bank (WIB) is confident the hybrid market is set for growth.

Shinhan Bank (A-/A3/A-) is likely to become the first Korean commercial bank to sell a Kangaroo after completing its roadshow in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane on April 19.

Moody’s Investors Service (Moody’s) has lowered its ratings of 44 European banks following what it calls the “refinement” of its bank rating methodology.

Finland’s Municipality Finance (MuniFin) (AAA/Aaa) priced its first Kangaroo issue on April 11 with a A$200 million (US$166 million), four-year note, co-led by Westpac Institutional Bank (WIB) and Nomura.

As Swiss Re launches a roadshow for its first T1 hybrid Kangaroo issue, a perpetual non-call 10 note, joint lead arranger and joint bookrunner Westpac Institutional Bank (WIB) is confident that the hybrid Kangaroo market is set for growth.

The proposed acquisition of US agency SLM Corporation (Sallie Mae) (A/A2/A+) by a private equity consortium has resulted in the issuer being placed on credit watch by all three ratings agencies.

Sydney-based Kapstream Capital is preparing to launch its first fund, the Kapstream Absolute Return Income Fund, trading global fixed income with an absolute return strategy.

Issuers, intermediaries and investors speaking at the recent KangaNews/Westpac speed-meeting summit agree that while the Kangaroo market should continue to experience impressive growth, there is still room for development in terms of product range, transparency and market depth.

Kommunalbanken Norway (KBN) (AAA/Aaa/AAA) made its first foray into the Kangaroo market for over a year with the issue of a A$200 million (US$163 million), triple-A rated note priced on March 21.