Am Finanzmarkt sind deutsche Exportschlager die Ausnahme. Nach dem Pfandbrief könnte der Schuldschein einer werden, den er wird immer bedeutender.

Artikel vom 25.01.2020 Markus Frühauf

There is only one German export hit on the financial market: this is the Pfandbrief, which celebrated its 250th anniversary last year. In addition to these bank bonds backed with mortgage or government loans, another debt instrument with German origin is now becoming an export hit.
F.A.Z.
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It is the promissory note, a hybrid between corporate bonds and the syndicated loan granted by several banks. More and more companies are using this financing instrument. Compared to 2015, the number of IOUs in circulation more than doubled to 140 billion euros by the end of 2019. This marks a fourth year in a row.

Issuers in the past year included a number of prominent companies such as Porsche, Deutsche Lufthansa, Fresenius, Barry Callebaut, Peugeot, Valeo and Continental. The auto parts supplier ZF Friedrichshafen issued the largest promissory note with a volume of 2.1 billion euros.

High flexibility
The head of HSBC Germany's bond business, Ingo Nolden, considers the promissory note to be attractive for companies because it enables great flexibility. In conversation with the F.A.Z. For example, he names the versatility in terms of terms and currencies. But the documentation process for attractive credit margins is also an important factor for the high level of interest.

Unlike corporate bonds, promissory notes are not tradable on the market, so that no prices are set regularly. At the same time, this means that the companies do not have to draw up a prospectus for the promissory note. Many investors, especially banks, buy promissory notes because they want to secure a small interest premium over the entire term.

The lower liquidity compared to the bond is usually compensated for by a slightly higher interest rate. Getting out before the due date is possible, but finding buyers is not easy. In 2017, the Hamburg and Hanover stock exchanges set up a bond dealership, which is now operated via Commnex, a marketplace for municipal financing.

Banking dominated
There was apparently no great response to the trading platform for promissory notes. Trade still dominates among banks. In addition to companies, municipalities also issue many promissory notes.

The growth in the market for corporate bonds is surprising, because some bankruptcies have caused difficulties in recent years. These included the furniture group Steinhoff, the British construction company Carillion and the fashion company Gerry Weber.

Image: F.A.Z.
But HSBC specialist Nolden continues to see the promissory note as attractive for investors because it enables access to a wide range of new issuers. They are often large medium-sized companies that shy away from the effort of a listed bond.

This is also shown by the average issue size of the promissory notes, which according to HSBC had been 199 million euros last year. Corporate bonds are usually much larger. According to the consulting firm Capmarcon, which specializes in corporate finance, the promissory note market now has a volume that accounts for 40 percent of the corporate bond market.

Higher share abroad
Last year HSBC counted new promissory notes with a volume of 29 billion euros, which is also a record. According to Nolden, the largest group of investors were commercial banks with a share of 35 percent, followed by the savings banks with 25 percent. The proportion of international investors was 50 percent last year and, according to Nolden, has the potential to continue growing this year. Asian investors are playing an increasingly important role among investors.

Nolden continues to expect a lively course for the new year. The volumes are dependent, among other things, on the development of takeovers and mergers and the fluctuations in the bond market. Even if the start of the year was subdued, discussions with companies showed that the market would be characterized by further, structural growth.

Nolden regards the link with the topic of sustainability and internationalization as significant trends on the promissory note market both on the part of investors and on the part of issuers. French and Austrian companies in particular issue promissory notes. Issuers from abroad accounted for almost 44 percent of the new issues in 2019.

The rating agency Scope expects investors to have higher returns, especially from companies in cyclical sectors. In recent years there have been car manufacturers and suppliers, as well as builders