By Gareth Vaughan
BNZ may launch a fresh senior bond issue as soon as today.
The offer would include two five-year tranches, with one paying investors' a floating interest rate and the other a fixed interest rate.
News of the likely new offer comes after BNZ last month said it was calling and repaying a NZ$450 million perpetual non-cumulative share issue, which has been paying investors 9.89%. Those securities, regarded as tier one capital, will be called on their call date, which is March 28. Any new issue from the bank is likely to be timed to coincide with that settlement.
Although BNZ is keen to push ahead with a bond offer this week, it's understood the situation in the European Union, where developments in tiny Cyprus have unnerved financial markets, are being closely monitored before the button is pushed on any offer.
Last month BNZ Treasurer Tim Main told interest.co.nz the bank's current fund raising needs were "just maintenance." Main said funds required for BNZ's current financial year, which runs until September 30, totaled about NZ$1.5 billion, compared with the about NZ$4 billion it raised in each of its previous two financial years.
Meanwhile, amid speculation ASB is looking to become just the second bank, after Kiwibank, to issue tier two capital instruments under the Reserve Bank's new Basel III rules, ASB's treasury general manager Nigel Annett said: "There has been no decision made regarding the issuance of a tier two instrument at this time."
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