| At a glance: Size: €1.1 billion Issuer: Deutsche Post Vendor: KfW Bookrunner: Nomura Date: February 3, 2005 |
Equity capital markets had their best year in 2005 since the turn of the decade. In Europe in particular, but also in the US and Asia, there were several multi-billion dollar IPOs and secondary sales. In the fourth quarter of 2005 there were 468 IPOs that raise $68.5 billion, the highest volume on record, according to Dealogic. However, despite the long list of impressive deals in the fourth quarter, Euromoney’s choice for deal of the year 2005 comes from its first months.
Although IPOs grabbed the headlines in 2005 and equity-linked issuance fell to its lowest levels since 1998, there was more innovation in the increasingly sophisticated equity-linked market.
German development bank KfW’s €1.1 billion Deutsche Post exchangeable, which launched in January and was issued in February, is a classic case of the right deal at the right time.
KfW was stuck in a lock-up agreement after having just sold €1 billion-worth of Deutsche Post stock in an accelerated deal in November 2004, but it was still looking to reduce its holdings further.