European Finance: The Big Thaw

As investors return to the market, big companies in Europe are finding it easier to raise money via bonds, equities, and even IPOs

A BNP Paribas bank branch in the La Defense business district west of Paris. LOIC VENANCE/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

By Mark Scott

The chief financial officers at some of Europe's largest firms have had a busy few months. Since markets started to recover in early summer, executives from companies including German retailer Metro (MEOG.DE) and Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto (RTP) have hit up investors for extra funds. And in the past two weeks, French banks Société Générale (SOGN.PA) and BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), as well as Italian counterpart UniCredit (CRDI.MI), have announced rights issues set to raise billions of dollars.

The fact that corporations are refilling their coffers is the latest sign the worst of the Great Recession may now be over. Indeed, data provider Dealogic (DL.L) estimates European companies have taken in almost $221 billion through rights issues and initial public offerings so far this year. That's just below the $228 billion raised in all of 2008, which analysts expect to be surpassed by the end of 2009. Firms also have bagged $1.1 trillion through corporate bonds so far this year, vs. $865 billion during all of 2008. Nonfinancial companies—still suffering from banks' high lending fees—have scored almost two-thirds of their funding from the resurgent corporate bond market.

The flurry of activity is a win-win for companies and investors alike. For recession-hit firms, the extra cash helps bolster sagging balance sheets and provides ammunition to snap up merger-and-acquisition targets at continuing knockdown prices. And for gun-shy investors—many still hoping to recoup losses from the past two years—the chance to lock in attractive corporate bond yields and grab equity stakes amid rising markets is too good to pass up.

"It's mutually beneficial for both sides," says Mike Lenhoff, chief strategist at stockbrokers Brewin Dolphin (BRW.L) in London. "Companies are looking ahead to take advantage of the gradual recovery, and investors' appetite for risk is slowing returning."

Time to Repay

Nothing epitomizes the trend more than French banks BNP Paribas and Société Générale. Though they sidestepped many of the problems caused by toxic financial products, the banks accepted a combined $12.7 billion bailout from the French government last year when market sentiment was at its lowest. Now, BNP expects to raise $6.4 billion and SocGen $7 billion through rights issues. The goals: to repay government funds, which came with increased regulatory oversight, and to improve their tier-one capital ratios, a key indicator of financial strength.

Another promising sign of recovery is the tentative revival in IPOs. According to the PricewaterhouseCoopers IPO Watch Europe Survey, which monitors new listings Continent-wide, 44 companies raised $2.7 billion in the third quarter of 2009, compared with 28 new listings for a combined $680 million the previous quarter.

The bandwagon looks set to continue. British insurer Aviva (AV.L), which has businesses across Europe and in the U.S., announced plans Oct. 5 to float a minority stake in its Dutch subsidiary, Delta Lloyd, for an estimated $1.5 billion. The deal will be Europe's largest IPO so far this year, and Aviva plans to use the cash to pick up depressed assets across Europe.

Business Exchange

Track and share business topics across the Web.