Bankinter placed a twice subscribed Eu500m increase of an outstanding July 2016 issue yesterday (Monday) on the background of improved market conditions and the announcement of positive first quarter results, according to a lead syndicate banker.

Leads Barclays, Natixis, Nomura and Bankinter priced the tap at 172bp over mid-swaps, tightening the spread from initial price thoughts in the 180bp over mid-swaps area and guidance of 175bp over.

The deal attracted more than Eu1bn of orders, according to the lead syndicate banker.

Priced at 172bp over mid-swaps, the deal came flat to secondaries and some 35bp through Spanish government bonds, he said.

“The issuer seized the current improvement in market conditions for Spanish issuers, and excess liquidity seen in the market,” said the banker, “which is reflected in an increase of the appetite for bonds belonging to good credits.”

The books were opened yesterday “after a positive Bankinter Q1 results announcement and a good start in the credit, equity and indices markets in general,” he added.

Covadonga Perez, head of the funding department at Bankinter, said that the bank wanted to issue a three year deal that would have matured in May 2016.

“But that was really close to the maturity of our existing July 2016 bond, so we decided instead to increase the size of that bond to Eu1bn,” she said. “A Eu1bn deal is also more liquid for investors to trade.”

The lead syndicate banker noted that the deal was the first public bond issuance from a Spanish financial institution in almost seven weeks.

More than 75 accounts participated in the transaction. The UK took 26%, Germany and Austria 24%, Spain 22%, France 10%, the Nordics 7%, Switzerland 5%, Italy 2%, and others 4%.

Fund managers were allocated 59%, banks 28%, insurance companies 8%, central banks 2%, and others 3%.