ANZ this (Thursday) morning squeezed in between a public holiday in much of Europe yesterday and an ECB press conference today, meeting with good demand for its first euro benchmark since January 2012 and pricing generally in line with expectations.

Leads ANZ, Barclays, Deutsche Bank and UBS gathered more than Eu1.5bn of orders for a seven year trade – the eighth new euro issue in a row to feature this maturity – and will price the deal at 17bp over mid-swaps. The size of the deal was not fixed by the time of publication.

After announcing the deal yesterday (Wednesday) afternoon, they went out with initial price thoughts of the 20bp over area this morning and then guidance of the 18bp over area, an approach that several syndicate bankers away from the deal approved of.

“The level is bang-on, and my advice would have been the same – to go with the 20bp area and target flat to Westpac,” said one. “I don’t think they got a Swedbank-type book, but it’s still a very good outcome.”

As an Australian covered bond, ANZ’s deal is neither UCITS- nor CRD-compliant, and it is also not ECB repo-eligible, he noted.

Some bankers said that they had expected pricing of 16bp over, however.

Westpac Banking Corporation priced the first Australian euro benchmark of the year three weeks ago, a Eu1bn seven year that came at 19bp over and is said to be trading at 16bp-17bp over.

A syndicate banker away from the deal said that it is only natural that ANZ would benefit from coming after Westpac and be able to price tighter given that the market tone remains positive and Westpac’s deal has performed.

Today’s deal comes two days after ANZ Banking Group announced its half year results.

A syndicate banker away from the leads questioned the timing of the deal, launched after a public holiday in many European countries yesterday and on the same day as a European Central Bank meeting and press conference, but another did not view this critically.

“There was not much risk that the leads would still be bookbuilding by the time of the ECB meeting,” he said. “You could expect the deal to be done by midday.”

The ECB press conference starts at 14.30 CET.

ANZ last tapped the public benchmark covered bond in January, selling a £500m (Eu591.5m/A$760.8m) three year floating rate note at 27bp over three month Libor. Its last euro deal was in January 2012, a Eu1bn 10 year re-offered at 130bp over mid-swaps. Since then it has issued a US dollar benchmark, two benchmarks in Australian dollars and the sterling trade.

Despite there having been a “flurry” of deals, at least by recent market standards, ANZ’s deal shows that there is still ample cash to be put to work, said a syndicate banker.