European companies to tap Asian private banks

Late last month, RWE from Germany broke new ground by becoming the first European company to issue hybrid capital to Asian investors since Porsche in 2006. And bankers are predicting that more European companies will follow their banking cousins and become regular issuers of debt deals, specifically structured to appeal to Asian private banks.

According to Volker Heischkamp, treasurer of RWE in Essen, the deal was part of a general strategy to strengthen RWE’s capital structure that was decided in August last year and which has seen the company issue deals in sterling and Swiss francs. But the success of the Asian deal surprised RWE and could prompt other...