The Swedish Covered Bond Corporation has established an Australian MTN programme. Meanwhile, Stadshypotek expects to inaugurate issuance backed by a Norwegian cover pool in the Norwegian krone market, according to spokesperson for the issuer.

Moody’s assigned a provisional Aaa rating to SCBC’s programme yesterday (Monday). SCBC joins compatriot Stadshypotek in targeting the Australian market, with the latter on a roadshow in the country this week.

Stadshypotek has also set up a new programme backed by Norwegian mortgage loans but under Swedish covered bond legislation, as reported yesterday.

“It’s a natural step,” Thomas Åhman, deputy head of treasury at Handelsbanken – Stadshypotek’s parent – told The Covered Bond Report. “We have had our business in Norway for some time now and have set up the Norwegian cover pool now that we have reached a critical mass.”

Moody’s put the size of the cover pool at Nkr26.3bn (Eu3.4bn) in a rating release on the programme yesterday but Åhman said that it is now around Nkr30bn (Eu3.87bn).

He said that the Norwegian krone market would be a good fit for issuance backed by the new cover pool.

“The Handelsbanken brand is well known,” said Åhman, “and it is just a matter of talking to investors and giving them a view of our mortgage portfolio there.”

He said that while the issuer would be open to the idea of euro issuance backed by the pool in the future, it would restrict Swedish krona issuance to that backed by its Swedish cover pool.

Bigger issuers including DnB Nor Boligkreditt and SpareBank 1 Boligkreditt have split issuance backed by residential mortgages and by commercial mortgages into separate cover pools and programmes. Stadshypotek’s Nowegian cover pool will comprise 5% multi-family loans to commercial and housing association landlords, according to Moody’s, and Åhman said that the small volume of such loans explains why they will be in the same pool as other residential mortgage loans that make up the vast majority of the cover pool.