Covered bonds: Santander polishes its reputation

Market watchers are wondering whether or not a reverse takeover of the treasury operation at Santander has taken place. When the Spanish bank swallowed up UK mortgage bank Abbey, many feared that Abbey’s highly regarded treasury operation would lose credibility in the eyes of investors. But Santander has brought to market a breakthrough trade with a new-found regard for price transparency and performance. In September it printed €4 billion in two tranches – one €2.5