HLIB tops RAM Lead Managers’ League Tables in 9M18

KUALA LUMPUR: Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd topped RAM’s league tables in terms of programme size for corporate bonds as at end-September 2018, having arranged RM28.50 billion or 44 per cent of the RM64.58 billion of RAM-rated corporate bonds. Public Investment Bank Berhad followed with RM10 billion.

When it came to the number of RAM-rated corporate bond deals, Maybank Investment Bhd (Maybank IB) took pole position with four deals. Meanwhile, CIMB Investment Bank Bhd (CIMB IB) was the leader in terms of sukuk programme value, with RM2.95 billion or 31 per cent of RAM-rated sukuk; Maybank IB came in second with RM2.74 billion, and followed by RHB Investment Bank Berhad with RM2.73 billion.

All three banks were joint leaders in number of transactions, having arranged two each.

“Outstanding corporate bonds in the domestic market amounted to RM648.1 billion as at end-September 2018,” RAM said in a statement. “For the first nine months of the year, gross issuance of corporate bonds and sukuk – inclusive of quasigovernment entities – summed up to RM77.2 billion - about nine per cent lower y-o-y.

“The slower pace was mainly due to less issuance by quasi-government entities. We still expect relatively muted issuance activity from this segment amid the Government’s ongoing cost rationalisation.”

RAM saw that in September, the private sector’s debt issuance shrank to RM5.4 billion compared to RM6.1 billion the previous month. Nonetheless, the sector’s year-to-date issuance value edged up RM500 million y-o-y to RM49.9 billion. The financial services sector remained the primary driver of corporate bond issuance, accounting for 45 per cent – consistent with the trend of the last two years. Infrastructure issuance constituted another 19 per cent of corporate bond issuance.

“Moving forward, RAM anticipates the corporate bond market to chart a steady course through the rest of 2018. Growth is envisaged to be sustained by financial institutions’ additional capital-augmentation initiatives.

“Based on the existing pipeline, we expect gross corporate bond issuance to reach our projected range of RM90 billion to RM100 billion for the year.”