Heyday of the capital markets

September 01, 2000

Remember how the internet was going to put securities firms out of business? It isn’t happening yet. Never before have investment banks made so much money from international capital markets. Volumes are rising across all categories. Underwriting fees are holding steady. And lucrative areas such as capital instruments, leveraged finance and securitization are bursting into life. Meanwhile, the equity markets have been a thrill-a-minute roller-coaster ride. But times aren’t as good for issuers and investors. As prices slide, bond and equity buyers alike have lost money. And issuers have had to jump through hoops to complete deals in crowded and volatile markets. Michael Peterson reports

Fees only go in one direction - down. Bankers throughout the capital markets use the same phrase to bemoan the lack of money in their business. Maybe so. But they complain with less conviction than they have done in the past.

Fees on bond issues from frequent borrowers have never been generous and they are still under pressure. For frequent borrowers of all types, such as supranationals, agencies and Pfandbrief issuers, there is a continuing trend towards large, liquid deals which leave only thin margins for underwriters. These borrowers have also been the quickest to embrace electronic distribution and are keen to get their bonds listed on government bond trading platforms such as EuroMTS.

But bond volumes are increasing dramatically and most of the growth is not coming from these cost-conscious borrowers. Last year a record $1.4 trillion-worth of international bonds were raised.

Heyday of the capital markets

To unlock this article

Topics