Unicredit top bank in subdued market

Once again, a French high-speed rail deal has made the most impact on our InfrastructureInvestor Assets quarterly league tables. In the second quarter, it was the $11.3 billion Tours-Bordeaux high-speed rail project topping our table of most valuable projects and elevating Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) to the top of the mandated lead arranger (MLA) league table. 

In the third quarter, the somewhat more modest $4.3 billion Bretagne Pays de Loire (BPL) deal takes the plaudits as the largest project. And like Tours-Bordeaux, it has played the role of king-maker in the MLA table. No fewer than six of the top ten banks in the table were involved in BPL, led by Italy’s Unicredit, which tops the charts with $1.2 billion of deals completed and a global market share of almost 8 percent.

Perhaps reflecting the volatile economic climate and continuing woes in the banking sector, the third quarter was a quiet one with just over $15.6 billion of loans completed. This compares with the $29.7 billion worth of MLA activity signed off during the second quarter.   

Western Europe dominated global project finance activity in the third quarter, accounting for a market share of 47 percent. The three most active countries during the period were respectively France, Germany and Spain.  

The InfrastructureInvestor Assets database (www.iiassets.com) provides key transaction details on over 3,400 infrastructure projects that have commenced or been financed since 1 January 2006. A key part of this coverage is the provision of full details of over 2,300 project loans and bonds related to these assets – letting you analyse, compare and benchmark a particular transaction, sector or market.

Top 10 Mandated Lead Arrangers, Q3 2011