Linklaters, A&O Shearman and Fangda Partners have advised China’s Ministry of Finance (MOF) on issuing the first-of-its-kind sovereign bonds in Luxembourg valued at EUR4 billion (USD4.64 billion).
This is China’s maiden debut of euro-denominated sovereign bonds on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange, which is set to improve the yield curve of such bonds.
The issuance comprised two tranches of EUR2 billion bonds, including a four-year bond with a yield of 2.401% and a seven-year bond with a yield of 2.702%.
Both tranches are deposited with the Central Moneymarkets Unit in Hong Kong, and listed on the HKEX and Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
Linklaters advised the MOF on international law, led by partners William Liu and Fang Min, with support from its Luxembourg capital markets team.
A&O Shearman counselled the joint lead managers and joint bookrunners on international law, led by partner Agnes Tsang, while Fangda Partners acted as the underwriters’ PRC legal counsel.
The issuance attracted strong market demand from investors, recording a total subscription of EUR100 billion, a record-high for China’s euro sovereign bonds. In particular, the seven-year bond was oversubscribed by 26.5 times.