EUROPEAN and Hong Kong banks hit the market for $2.2 billion worth of floating-rate certificate of deposit (FRCD) issues yesterday, and the territory's bankers said at least $1.6 billion in new deals seemed imminent.
Dao Heng Bank is seeking $1.2 billion through arrangers BoT Group, Barclays Bank and Bayerische Landesbank Hong Kong, and ABN-AMRO finally emerged with its long-awaited $1 billion FRCD. Both are for five years.
Bankers said Dao Heng's FRCD paid a coupon of 70 basis points over three-month Hong Kong interbank offered rate (HIBOR).
Its paper was issued at par.
ABN-AMRO is paying a substantially lower 30 basis points over one-month HIBOR to investors, whose all-in yield is accordingly lower. However, ABN-AMRO has a high Aa1 long-term senior debt rating from Moody's Investors Service.
Co-arrangers paying $100 million or more for Dao Heng's paper received 50 basis points for an all-in yield of 80 basis points. Lead managers paying $75 million to $100 million get 45 basis points for an all-in of 79 basis points.
