Europe's investment-grade issuers piled into the market to raise $239.1bn in September — the third-busiest month of 2026 — as the post-summer reopening brought a wave of SSA and financial supply into some of the strongest demand of the year. This all unfolded against a backdrop of rising European government bond yields that really started to bite as the month came to an end.
Italy's €8bn green BTP — its largest single print of September and its largest ESG deal — drew a 14-times-covered book, while in the corporate space L'Oreal's €500m 3.75% 2029 tightened pricing by 32bps from guidance (mid-swaps plus 55bps), allaying fears of impairment raised from the widening OAT/Bund spread.
Turning up the volume
September core currency (EUR, GBP, USD) issuance followed behind January $392bn and May $246bn, this year, but was up from $119bn in August. The week of 7 September was the busiest of the month with $72.7bn EUR/GBP issuance ($26bn being SSA), up from $52bn the week before, as issuers cleared pipeline built up over the summer lull. The UK led the sovereign side with a £4.25bn tap of its 2056 gilt, covered 20x — the strongest book of the month.
Source: 9fin
