Global issuance of contingent capital (CoCo) securities by the world’s banks is expected to decline by 30% this year, says Moody’s Investors Service report published Wednesday.
The report from the New York City-based credit rating agency predicts that global issuance of CoCos will total about US$75 billion in 2016, down from US$105 billion in 2015, and less than half of the US$175 billion worth issued in 2014.
Through the middle of April, new issuance volume was down by 50% from 2015 to US$23.7 billion from US$47.4 billion over the same period in 2015, the Moody’s report says.
“The issuance slump in CoCos during 2016 globally follows a temporary market shutdown in Europe and the absence of any [issuance] in Asia so far,” says Simon Ainsworth, a senior vice president at Moody’s, in a statement.
“Financial market volatility overall has affected issuance, driven by concerns surrounding the Chinese economy, weak commodity prices and, in Europe, concerns around the risk of coupon suspension,” he adds.
Since 2009 global issuance of contingent capital securities from Moody’s-rated banks stands at $395 billion as of mid-April 2016, the Moody’s report says.