The establishment of a new company, ANZNB Covered Bond Trust Ltd, suggests that New Zealand’s ANZ National Bank is planning to enter the covered bond market.

According to the New Zealand companies registry, the trust was registered on 13 December.

A spokesperson for ANZ New Zealand was unable to respond to enquiries by the time The Covered Bond Report went to press.

Through its ANZ and National Bank franchises, ANZ New Zealand finances more than 30% of home loans in the country, according to the ANZ NZ website.

In June 2010 Bank of New Zealand issued the first covered bond from the country, a two tranche deal, comprising NZ$175m in five year bonds and NZ$250m in seven year.

A month before the BNZ deal, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and government indicated support for covered bonds.

On 12 December, Australia announced plans to amend legislation that has so far prohibited the issuance of covered bonds. The country’s lenders and the Australian Securitisation Forum had been lobbying for such a change.

Thanks in part to their efforts, the government will soon allow banks, credit unions and building societies to issue covered bonds.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce last year sold the first covered bond into Australia since 2007. Bank of Nova Scotia has hired UBS for meetings with Australian credit investors and could follow up with a covered bond issue.