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

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%