Debt capital markets (DCM) teams have been frantically busy since mid-March. Investment grade corporates, banks, sovereigns and supranationals all rushed to issue bonds in the teeth of the Covid-19 lockdowns in order to secure term funding while they still could.
“The corporate debt market has seen record levels with a couple of $120 billion weeks in the US and €80 billion weeks in Europe,” says Barry Donlon, head of DCM EMEA at UBS. “After the initial seizures in commercial paper and closure of new issuance, high-quality companies reopened markets with large deals that have performed well, so helping stem the outflows from bond funds.”
