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Agence Française de Développement successfully priced a new 4.500% £300 million benchmark due 22nd October 2028

communication financière

On Tuesday 1st April, Agence Française de Développement (AFD), rated AA- /AA- (S&P / Fitch), issued its first GBP benchmark of the year, a £300 million 3.5-year fixed rate benchmark due on the 22nd October 2028, offering a spread of 62bps over Sonia mid-swaps.

Following prior benchmark issuance in both EUR and USD this year, and with a supportive window for GBP, the new transaction was announced at 09:35 CET on Tuesday 1st April 2025. Orderbooks were opened concurrently, with initial price guidance of Sonia mid-swaps +62bps area.

Agence Française de Développement was able to capture a clear window for issuance following the heavy supply earlier in the year, responding to a resurgence in investor demand in recent sessions. The success of today’s transaction underscores the increasingly established signature of AFD in the Sterling market, well-recognised by the investor base.

The orderbook grew well throughout the morning, announced at over £300mn (incl. 25mn JLM) at 12:15 CET. At this stage the spread was set at Sonia mid-swaps + 62bps, providing clarity to investors for the next steps. Investor demand grew further from this spread confirmation and books closed above £385mn (incl. 30mn JLM) at 13:00 CET. Supported by this increase and by the quality of investor demand, the final size was set at £300mn.

In terms of allocations, the transaction was well diversified across fund managers (61%) and central banks / official institutions (31%), as well as allocation to banks and bank treasuries (4%).

By geography, the UK investor base again underlined its support for the AFD signature, receiving 62% allocation. Notable demand was also evidenced in Europe ex. UK (Nordics 17%, DACH 13%, BeNeLux 3%). Investors from Asia made up 4%, with the broad investor base underscoring the well-developed AFD signature across the Sterling market.

Thibaut Makarovsky, Head of Funding and Market Operations at AFD: We are very pleased to have been able to complete this Sterling benchmark issuance, early in the new quarter and with a favourable market backdrop. AFD seeks to maintain and develop its presence in the Sterling market, issuing a new public transaction each year since 2022, and we are delighted to have been able to bring a new benchmark in this format again in 2025. We are very grateful to our Sterling investor base who continue to support the AFD signature in this currency. 

Transaction Details:

  •     Issuer : Agence Française de Développement
  •     Ratings :  AA- S&P (Neg.) / AA- Fitch (Neg.) 
  •     Size of the transaction : £300,000,000
  •     Pricing Date : 1st April 2025
  •     Settlement date : 8th April 2025
  •     Maturity Date : 22nd October 2028
  •     Reoffer Price : 99.858%
  •     Coupon : 4.500%
  •     Reoffer Yield : 4.552% A / 4.501% SA
  •     Reoffer Spread : +62bps vs SONIA MS
  •     Reference UKT : + 52.0bps vs UKT 1 ⅝ 10/22/28 MID
  •     Listing : Euronext Paris
  •     Governing Law : French
  •     ISIN : FR001400YS12
  •     Joint Lead Managers : HSBC, NatWest, Santander
  •     Use of Proceeds : General Corporate Purposes

Investors by Geography    

UK    62%

Nordics    17%

DACH    13%

Asia    4%

BeNeLux    3%

Other    1%

Investors by Type 

AM    61%

CB/OI    31%

Banks    4%

Others    4%