Just over three years after Greece "triumphantly returned" to capital markets in April 2014, when it issued €3 billion in 5 year bonds at a yield of 4.95%, and a cash coupon of 4.75% - an offering which was 8x oversubcribed - and which crashed and nearly defaulted one year later when only the 3rd Greek bailout prevented the country from going bankrupt, only to get taken out at 102, moments ago Greece once again returned to the bond market, if far less triumphantly, by selling another €3 billion in 5 year paper which however was "only" 2x oversubscribed, with indications from Bloomberg that there was only €6.5 billion in demand for the "high yielding" paper. And speaking of yield, it came in lower than 3 years ago, pricing at 4.625% with a coupon of 4.375%.
For those who did not get their desired allottment in today's offering, fear not there will be more:
- GREEK FIN MIN SAYS THERE WILL BE A SECOND AND A THIRD BOND SALE
And while we await the final term sheet, here is an interesting observation from EuroWeek's Owen Sanderson, who explains why, in the more surprising aspect of today's bond sale, Greece had to spend €78 million for the previously discussed tender of the existing 5 year bond auction.
So it can either come cheap with the new issue, which adds to existing debt service problems, or it can....structure around that.
— Owen Sanderson (@OwenPSanderson) July 25, 2017
tldr: The cheapness required to guarantee Greece market access is in the tender, not in the new issue
— Owen Sanderson (@OwenPSanderson) July 25, 2017