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Bond markets were sent into a spin across Europe this week after the move from Swiss regulator Finma to wipe out $17bn of Credit Suisse’s AT1, or contingent convertibles (coco), as part of a rescue deal from its rival UBS.
According to standards set in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, holders of AT1 bonds rank above equity holders in the creditor hierarchy.
The move from Finma rocked the $275bn AT1 bond market this week and prompted fast legal threats, with litigation firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan saying it had now put together a multi-jurisdictional team of lawyers from Switzerland, the US and the UK to potentially act on behalf of the burnt bondholders.
A number of fund issuers, who are forced to disclose their positions, have been revealed as big holders of Credit Suisse’s AT1 bonds. However, as one source close to the firms tells City A.M., these are likely to be “just the tip of the iceberg”.
US investment giant Pimco is reportedly among the biggest losers of the bond obliteration by Finma....
more at City AM