Winner: BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas issued an eye-watering 12 SRT transactions referencing €26.3bn of exposures across six asset classes during the awards period, including via the launch of three new European programmes. For continuing to push the boundaries and expand its SRT franchise, the bank is SCI’s pick for European Issuer of the Year.  

Between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024, BNP Paribas placed €1.46bn of first or second loss tranches with over 20 investors, as well as €1.5bn of full-stack notes in the public ABS market. During this period, the bank closed its first deal referencing leveraged finance assets booked in BNP Paribas Fortis (€530m Project Harewood 2), its first French mid-cap leveraged finance deal (€1.12bn Project Hanovre, for BNP Paribas - Banque Commerciale en France (BCEF)) and an inaugural emerging markets transaction for its Polish subsidiary BNP Paribas Polska (PLN2.18bn Mazurka).

Harewood 2, which closed in September 2023, features CLNs issued directly from BNP Paribas Fortis’ balance sheet and references a fully disclosed portfolio of drawn and undrawn sponsor-led LBO facilities. An €85m mezzanine tranche (3.5%-19.5%) was placed with investors.

Meanwhile, the €1.96bn Marianne trade - referencing both French large corporate and SME loans originated by BCEF - marked the first issuance from a new BNP Paribas programme during the awards period. The bank transferred the credit risk on a 0.80%-5.20% mezzanine tranche via the issuance of CLNs in September 2023.

Mazurka, which closed in March 2024, marked the launch of the bank’s second new programme during the period. The transaction also represents BNP Paribas’ second with the IFC and involved the placement of a PLN218m mezz tranche (1%-11%), referencing a portfolio of Polish corporate loans. The capital freed up by the trade was used to finance climate change mitigation projects, focusing on renewable energy, energy efficiency and green projects.

BNP Paribas also closed Project Hanovre – its third new programme – in March 2024, purchasing credit protection on a 4%-16% mezzanine tranche via the issuance of CLNs worth €134m. The €1.12bn reference pool comprises drawn and undrawn French LBO loan exposures, with an average rating of double-B.

Although investors generally require extensive disclosure on LBO financing, the portfolio had to be blind, given the complexity of disclosures under French banking secrecy law for such assets. Considering the blind nature of the portfolio, a large syndication wasn’t feasible, so the deal was placed bilaterally with an investor able to bid for the entire mezz tranche. Notably, the investor was new to the BNP Paribas platform.

The bank’s objectives during the awards period were to continue opening up more asset classes as part of its capital management toolkit, onboard new entities of the Group onto its SRT platform and increase its distribution footprint to ensure solutions are available for different asset classes at different times of the year. This has been made possible by the group-wide mandate and skillset of the securitised products team, as well as placing distribution at the heart of its SRT strategy. By positioning each transaction with a unique set of investors to ensure capacity, BNP Paribas continues to demonstrate that it can execute difficult trades in difficult market conditions.

For the full list of winners and honourable mentions in this year’s SCI Capital Relief Trades Awards, click here.