Sekerbank is considering making a first appearance in the euro public markets with its next SME covered bond issue, according to an official at the Turkish bank, after it said last week that it has received regulatory approval for Tl750m (Eu259m) of issuance.

The bank announced on Wednesday that it had received clearance from the Capital Markets Board of Turkey, and Zeki Önder, executive vice president at Sekerbank, told The CBR that it will now begin working on a transaction that could emerge before the year-end.

“We are looking at possibilities in the market,” he said.

The bank has launched eight issues so far off its SME covered bond programme but these have hitherto been private placements sold to supranationals, government agencies and private investors. Önder said that the new issue could be a first publicly marketed transaction in euros sold to international accounts.

Any such deal would be the first publicly marketed covered bond from Turkey. Some of Sekerbank’s peers have discussed similar plans, for either mortgage or asset covered bonds (the two types of issuance possible under Turkish legislation), but none has yet emerged.