The Pfandbrief 2011 | 2012
The Pfandbrief 2011 | 2012
The Pfandbrief 2011 | 2012
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In changeable times, investors look for a safe haven. Also in the sovereign<br />
debt crisis that followed the bank crisis and came to a head at the end of<br />
the first half of <strong>2011</strong>, <strong>Pfandbrief</strong>e have proven themselves to be reliable.<br />
Investors stand by the product in difficult times thanks, not least, to the<br />
high degree of transparency of the cover assets. A project which <strong>Pfandbrief</strong><br />
banks have embarked upon currently seeks to heighten transparency<br />
on the secondary market.<br />
Government Debt Crisis Depresses Sentiment on the Financial Markets,<br />
<strong>Pfandbrief</strong>e in Demand<br />
After the IMF and EU rescue shield had been put together and the solution to the Greek debt<br />
crisis seemed to be within reach in the second half of 2010, the sovereign debt crisis intensified<br />
further when Ireland, too, availed itself of the rescue shield in November 2010. In the first<br />
half of <strong>2011</strong>, the focus fell on additional Mediterranean states. <strong>The</strong> situation in Greece grew<br />
even worse, finally prompting S&P to downgrade the Greek credit rating to CCC in June <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
<strong>The</strong> differences between the eurozone countries and the European Central Bank over how to<br />
remedy Greece’s debt problem – notably Germany’s proposal that private creditors participate<br />
in a restructuring of Greek debt – depressed the sentiment in the financial markets. Given<br />
the uncertainty about how the crisis would develop, covered bonds – above all, <strong>Pfandbrief</strong>e –<br />
increasingly attracted investors’ interest.<br />
21<br />
Swap spreads in comparison*<br />
bp<br />
300<br />
275<br />
250<br />
225<br />
200<br />
175<br />
150<br />
125<br />
100<br />
75<br />
50<br />
25<br />
0<br />
-25<br />
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 <strong>2011</strong><br />
iBoxx senior financials iBoxx all covered bonds iBoxx German <strong>Pfandbrief</strong>e<br />
* <strong>The</strong> comparison is distorted slightly by different durations of the indices.<br />
Sources: Commerzbank, iBoxx