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IFR German SME Funding Roundtable 2016

IFR’s 4th annual German SME Funding Roundtable, held at the end of September in Frankfurt, was another absorbing encounter.

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IFR German SME Funding Roundtable 2016: Participants

Thomas Haas BayernLB Thomas Haas is global head of loan syndication at BayernLB, a position he has held since January 2013. In this role, Haas manages the transformation process towards BayernLB becoming a long-term partner that goes beyond traditional credit financing, tailoring loans to the needs of customers. He joined the bank in 1998. Reinhard Haas Commerzbank Reinhard Haas is global head of DCM loans at Commerzbank. Joining Dresdner Bank in 1993, Haas has held positions in risk management and client coverage. He joined loan syndications...

IFR German SME Funding Roundtable 2016: Part 1

IFR: Good afternoon and welcome to IFR’s fourth annual German SME funding roundtable. 2016 has been a volatile year for a host of reasons – sluggish growth, negative rates in Europe, a potential rate rise and forthcoming presidential election in the US, Brexit as well as several geopolitical flashpoints including the refugee crisis in Europe. Reinhard, to get our discussion going, can you help us make some sense of all the themes insofar as they have impacted markets and sentiment this year? Reinhard Haas, Commerzbank: That’s an ambitious...

IFR German SME Funding Roundtable 2016: Part 2

IFR: Isn’t it also a question of discipline at the borrower end to make sure the funding mix is right? Thomas, is that discipline in balance? Thomas Haas, BayernLB: As a loan banker, as a relationship bank, you need to compete with prices and structures across the market. That is a challenge because a corporate treasurer will have met a Schuldschein guy who has told them: “look, my offer is better than that one; figure out what you want to do”. So first of all there is competition. I would not agree that Schuldschein buyers don’t know what...

IFR German SME Funding Roundtable 2016: Part 3

IFR: Sandro, if the loan and Schuldschein markets impact on each other in terms of pricing what about the bond market? The bond market is playing to a slightly different set of factors, but clearly there’s a link. Can bond pricing continue to reduce, bearing in mind we’ve seen investment-grade corporates raising new issues with negative yields? Sandro Pittalis, NordLB: Corporates selling debt with a negative yield is not that strange if you take into account how the CSPP is working. Corporate bond pricing will impact the loan market and the...