Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen (Helaba) set a record spread for benchmark 10 year supply today (Thursday), tapping a Eu750m 10 year Pfandbrief for Eu250m at 18bp through mid-swaps. The deal follows a Eu300m issue for Landesbank Berlin and a Eu50m tap for The Mortgage Society of Finland yesterday.

Helaba’s January 2027 public sector Pfandbriefe was reopened by leads Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole, DZ Bank, Helaba, HSBC and UBS with the spread fixed at minus 18bp and the tap size at Eu250m, no-grow. The book closed at 11:00 CET, but its size was not disclosed.

Syndicate bankers at the leads said the deal was subscribed, including orders from the joint lead managers. One described the deal as being “super-tight and super-opportunistic”.

The deal is understood to be the tightest ever benchmark covered bond issuance in the 10 year part of the curve, landing 1bp inside the previous record holders – a Eu250m tap of a MünchenerHyp 10 year on Monday and a Eu500m August 2016 issue for WL Bank priced last year.

Bankers said the deal was priced flat to the outstanding bond. The original Eu750m issue was priced at minus 7bp on 5 January as part of a dual-tranche offering, alongside a Eu1.25bn five year.

Landesbank Berlin yesterday (Wednesday) issued a Eu300m 10 year mortgage Pfandbrief. The deal was priced by leads DekaBank and Landesbank Berlin at 11bp through mid-swaps, in the middle of initial guidance.

Bankers away from the deal noted the sub-benchmark trade was priced only a few basis points wider than some recent benchmark 10 year supply from more established German issuers, with Deutsche Apotheker- und Ärztebank, for example, having priced a Eu500m 10 year at minus 13bp on 27 September.

“For a sub-benchmark, it is very rich,” said a syndicate banker.

The Mortgage Society of Finland (Hypo) meanwhile tapped a Eu250m June 2024 issue by Eu50m at a spread of 4bp over mid-swaps. The original deal was priced at 9bp on 20 June and seen trading at around 4bp, pre-announcement.