Martin Egan on regional finance
From Martin Egan at BNP Paribas Talks GCC DCM Pipeline, Oil and Geopolitics, and LIBOR · · Bonds & Loans
“Well it's been a good year so far for the region; we've had some large submissions from Saudi and from the Qataris as well, which has both received very good responses.”
On , Martin Egan, MD, Interim Chief Financial Officer & Chief Accounting Officer at BANCORP INC, spoke about regional finance during Martin Egan at BNP Paribas Talks GCC DCM Pipeline, Oil and Geopolitics, and LIBOR on Bonds & Loans.
About Martin Egan
Martin Egan, formerly Global Head of Primary Markets and Origination at BNP Paribas and chair of the International Capital Market Association's primary markets practices committee, has spoken about debt capital markets in the Middle East and the transition away from LIBOR. In 2018, Egan described the year as "a good year so far for the region" with "large submissions from Saudi and from the Qataris" receiving good responses, and he expected continued issuance due to "a lot of redemptions coming up now in 2019" and "rates still at historical lows." He noted that geopolitical risk concerns in the region were "caveated by the fact that you've got all prices rising" and commodity prices rising, which he called "a real sort of good backstop for the region." Egan stated that "credits are pricing at pretty fair levels" but that geopolitical risk could become "more pronounced" if the region became "more problematic." Regarding the transition from LIBOR, Egan said "there is no easy answer" and predicted the result would be "less of a sort of global standard but very specific standards in each relevant jurisdiction," emphasizing that the most important factor is that any replacement rate is "fair and transparent." In earlier remarks, Egan described his role chairing the primary markets practices committee, which he said "handles the underwriting capacity and capabilities of the marketplace" and includes members from major international and domestic banks. He stated that the committee meets quarterly and focuses on "improving market practice," including allocation procedures and legal aspects, with the goal of ensuring "the market works as efficiently as it can" and that "everything we do is seen to be fair and clear to all parties."