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Reaching the top
The 2022 US corporate bond market tested issuers unlike any year since the credit crisis, as rates rose and volatility prevailed. For providing a diversity of clients the right advice for these trying times – and helping them raise a lot of money – Citigroup is IFR’s US Bond House and Yankee Bond House of the Year.
Grabbing the limelight
Size, execution and purpose made Warner Bros Discovery’s US$30bn bond the largest investment-grade deal of 2022, a clear star in a year when volatility made it hard for issuers to come to market.
Prime beginning
Spin-off consumer healthcare company Haleon took advantage of its parent pharma companies’ brand recognition, as well as their across-the-pond reach, to come out with its inaugural US$8.75bn bond offering at an auspicious time.
Clinical precision
In a year in which reverse Yankee issuance was much less prominent, Medtronic’s €3.5bn four-part offering in September was the standout trade.
Cellular proliferation
To say the euro market is part of BNP Paribas’ DNA would be something of an understatement. In 2022 it cast its net wider than ever in the public sector arena without missing a beat in its home currency. BNP Paribas is IFR’s Euro Bond House and SSAR Bond House of the Year.
Leading from the front
Volkswagen demonstrated demand for the challenged corporate hybrid bond market following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February, when it priced the largest subordinated offering of the year just a few weeks later, laying the groundwork for other issuers to follow suit.
Strategy and insight
In a year of elevated market volatility, Nomura set a positive tone for the international and domestic yen bond market, providing strong insights and meeting issuers' and investors' needs. Those skills make the bank IFR's Yen Bond House of the Year.
Enhanced access
Egypt proved many sceptical yen bond market participants wrong when it sold its debut ¥60bn (US$496m at the time of pricing) Samurai bond in March, proving that African sovereigns can find traction in the Japanese market.
Strategic choice
While no market was immune to the volatility caused by geopolitical events in 2022, the sterling sector seemed to take it upon itself to add some domestically inspired instability for good measure. It took a bank with a wide-ranging understanding across currencies to choose how and when to best access the market. Barclays is IFR’s Sterling Bond House of the Year.
Unprecedented drama
In the aftermath of the calamitous so-called mini-budget from the now ousted Liz Truss government, the UK Debt Management Office’s £4.5bn tap of the July 2053 green Gilt in late September priced through some of the worst conditions possible.
Back on top
Even the Swiss bond market had a tumultuous 2022. But against that background, one bank stood out, finally emerging from the shadows of its rivals. Demonstrating expertise, market knowledge, and highlighting its dominance as leader across the board at a time of unprecedented uncertainty, UBS is IFR's Swiss Franc Bond House of the Year.
Paving the way
Breaking new ground in the Swiss franc bond market, building materials company Holcim issued the first sustainability-linked bond in the currency at the beginning of the year.
New reality
It was not easy to be an underwriter in 2022’s high-grade corporate bond market. Rising rates, volatile spreads and a war in Europe turned the day-to-day business of deal-making on its head. For navigating tough markets and delivering results to the world’s biggest borrowers, Barclays is IFR’s North America Investment-Grade Corporate Bond House of the Year.
Getting social
Few companies coming into a market that featured invasion by one European sovereign of another, rapidly rising inflation accompanied by rate hikes from global central banks, and fierce competition in its sector would brave the kind of US$10bn offering Meta Platforms held in August.
Rocketing up the tables
The end of low interest rates and growing geopolitical headwinds made it tricky for issuers to access the corporate bond market in Europe. Despite the difficult times, HSBC picked up market share across euros and sterling and is IFR's Europe Investment-Grade Corporate Bond House of the Year.
Lighting the way
With bond markets in turmoil in 2022, issuers leaned towards the banks that could minimise the cost of funding and strengthen their balance sheets. For offering innovative ways to tap new investor pools and its breadth of coverage across financial institutions, Morgan Stanley is IFR’s North America Financial Bond House of the Year.
Over the border
Toronto-Dominion Bank came across the border in October to issue its first ever Additional Tier 1 capital instrument in the Yankee market.
Finding a way
In a year characterised by disruption and frequently shut markets, an experienced hand and innovative ideas were required. For steering the reopening of markets and guiding issuers through a turbulent year with precision and creativity, UBS is IFR’s Europe Financial Bond House of the Year.
Standing apart
Even before markets were thrown into turmoil by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, one product was conspicuous by its absence in the European FIG space in 2022: euro benchmark Additional Tier 1 bonds.
Icebreaker
All-pervading uncertainty drove issuers to lean more than ever on trusted DCM advisers to read the market. For astutely and consistently clearing pathways for some of the most notable trades through the difficult market cycles of 2022, Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg is IFR’s Covered Bond House of the Year.
Ushering in a new era
In an astutely chosen issuance window in August, Santander not only realised a covered bond tour de force with a blowout €3.5bn dual-tranche cedulas deal – a size rarely seen in the euro covered market – but in more ways than one ushered in a new era for the Spanish product.
The Middle East was one of the few bright spots globally in equity capital markets in 2022, with IPOs regularly flooded with billions of dollars of demand. Bankers believe that not only is issuance sustainable, but the diversity of sectors, types of deals and even geographic location of companies tapping the market will expand, ensuring the region is a significant part of future ECM activity.
The UK’s LDI crisis was one of the most shocking events in the financial markets in 2022. What went wrong and what happens now?
So-called perfect storms are becoming more frequent in the financial world. The UK will need to tread carefully to avoid being caught in another one.
Buffeted by Covid-19 and caught in the crosshairs of Sino-US tensions and an authoritarian Chinese regime, Hong Kong’s ability to adapt is under sharp focus as it seeks to remain relevant as a global financial centre.
As Japan makes the crucial move to net-zero carbon emissions and other environmental targets, it is relying on transition finance as the mechanism to get there.
