France: Private placement market grows rapidly

The small French private placement market, traditionally a preserve of larger public companies, is growing rapidly. French bankers expect it will soon provide some €15 billion to €20 billion a year of funding and to account for more than half of the total debt of unlisted mid-market companies.

French real-money investors, including large insurance companies, notably Axa, have been keen to diversify away from large concentrations of exposure to the bank and sovereign sectors and to diversify instead into corporate credit that offers some yield.