Xetra/FWB: 50th Bond Listed In Entry Standard For Corporate Bonds - Trading Commences For Gebr. Sanders GmbH & Co. KG Bond - Total Entry Standard Issue Volume Of Just Under €2 Billion

As of today, a total of 50 bonds of start-ups, growing companies and SMEs can be traded in the Frankfurt Stock Exchange's Entry Standard for corporate bonds. The Gebr. Sanders bond, which has an 8.75 percent interest rate and a five-year maturity, was included in trading today, following termination of the subscription phase on 18 October. 

A total of 24 new issues have already been listed in the Entry Standard for corporate bonds this year. The segment experienced strong growth in 2012, and companies' issue activity has continued to rise in 2013. Fourteen new bonds with a total issue volume of around €380 million were issued in the first half of the year alone. Total issue volume placed in the Entry Standard for corporate bonds now stands at around €1.9 billion.

“Commencement of trading for the 50th bond in the Entry Standard is a milestone in the segment's development. Thus, around 2.5 years since its launch, the Entry Standard for corporate bonds has finally established itself as a market leader in Germany. This proves that start-ups and established SMEs alike have great confidence that they can appeal to a broad investor base through the stock exchange,” said Dr Martin Reck, Managing Director Cash Market at Deutsche Börse.

Trading volume in the Entry Standard for bonds stood at around €600 million from January to August 2013. This figure has thus more than doubled year-on-year. The average coupon an investor receives currently amounts to around 7.35% per year.

Prime Standard for bonds celebrates one-year anniversary
The growth of the bond segments can also be seen in the Prime Standard for corporate bonds. One year after its launch, ten bonds from eight companies have been listed here with a total placed issue volume of over €3 billion. “The placement in particular of high-volume bonds in the Prime Standard shows that also large established companies are increasingly seeing the stock exchange as a complement to placing and trading their securities in direct trading via banks,” said Reck.

The Prime Standard focuses primarily on larger companies looking to place bonds with issue volumes of at least €100 million. At the same time, issuers in this premium segment are also subject to greater transparency requirements.