Covered bonds: Veolia’s obligations foncières

Veolia Environnement, the French utility, waste management and transport company, has gained permission from the Comité des Établissements de Crédit et des Entreprises d’Investissement (credit institutions and investment firms committee – CECEI) to set up a société de crédit foncier (SCF), the vehicle used under French law to issue obligations foncières.

Since 1999 a modest number of French financial institutions have used the obligation foncier structure to access the European covered bond market. But there is no precedent for corporates using this market.