New Alpha Bank foray into markets with senior preferred bond

Greek systemic lender Alpha Bank on Thursday officially announced the issuance of a new senior preferred bond, with Morgan Stanley selected as the lead manager.

The bond features a three-year duration with the possibility of revocation within a two-year period – or, in other words, a shorter duration than the average of similar issues.

According to reports, the issue will hover at between 200 and 300 million euros.

This is the third high-priority bond by the ATHEX-listed credit institution since 2020, when Alpha Bank began implementing a plan to cover Minimum Required Eligible Liabilities MRELs, in accordance with its strategic plan, and aiming to significantly strengthening its presence in the international capital markets.

The new bond is the second issued by a Greece-based systemic bank in 2022, a year that is witnessing major challenges for global money markets.

Also noteworthy is the fact that the previous and similar Alpha Bank bond issue, floated in December 2021, came during a period when the Greek state’s cost of borrowing went from 0.12 percent and 0.81 percent, for five-year and 10-year bonds, respectively, to the current levels of 4.27 percent and 5.05 percent, respectively.

As a result, the current issue is expected to feature a yield of between 6 to 7 percent