UniCredit issued €750 million of perpetual Additional Tier 1 notes to institutional investors, completing a deal it said would lift its Tier 1 ratio by about 25 basis points. The securities carry a 6.25% fixed coupon until December 2031. Demand exceeded €3.5 billion from more than 220 investors, allowing the Italian bank to tighten pricing from initial guidance.
The issue forms part of UniCredit’s 2026 institutional minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities funding plan. The bank set a 284.1-basis-point reset margin, which it described as the lowest in its history. The notes are expected to be rated Ba2 by Moody’s and BB by S&P.
STRONG DEMAND TIGHTENED TERMS
Initial coupon guidance was 6.625%–6.75%, before order-book demand enabled pricing at 6.25%. Funds received 67% of the allocation, hedge funds 17%, and central banks and official institutions 9%. By geography, investors in the UK took 33%, France 26% and Asia 9%.
UniCredit Bank GmbH coordinated the sale, with Barclays, BNP Paribas, BofA Securities, Citi, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and Santander joining as bookrunners.
LOSS-ABSORBING FEATURES REMAIN
The notes are deeply subordinated and include a 5.125% Common Equity Tier 1 trigger. If either UniCredit or the group falls below that threshold, the instrument will be temporarily written down to help cure the breach alongside comparable securities. In line with regulatory requirements, coupon payments are fully discretionary.
The notes may be called on 3 December 2031 and on any interest payment date thereafter; if not called, the coupon resets every five years at the five-year mid-swap rate plus 284.1 basis points. Any call is subject to regulatory approval.
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