Bank of East Asia, the third-largest publicly traded lender in Hong Kong, has raised HK$5.1 billion from the largest investment-grade local currency corporate bond sale, market sources said.
The sale could give a boost to the Hong Kong dollar-denominated bond market, which has been driven mainly by government-backed firms such as the Airport Authority and the Hong Kong Mortgage Corp.
Bank of East Asia's latest deal represents about 30 per cent of the HK$17.8 billion worth of local currency bonds issued so far this year, up 16 per cent from a year ago, according to Thomson Financial.
Total sales were HK$74.2 billion last year, an increase of 24 per cent from 2005, Thomson said.
The lender's sale broke the record of HK$3.6 billion in a deal by Link Real Estate Investment Trust, the largest property trust in the world, in July last year. Other major deals included Hang Seng Bank, which raised HK$2.5 billion in June 2005, and HK$1.7 billion worth of bonds from Citigroup of the United States in November last year.
Bank of East Asia's one-year bond was priced to yield 4.45 per cent and matures on April 28 next year. Proceeds would go towards general corporate purposes. BNP Paribas organised the sale.