Securitization is expected to be robust throughout Europe in 2001, with Spain and France showing the most growth, according to various reports published last week by Moody's Investors Service.
The rating agency predicts that Spain's ABS market will boom, with total securitization in the country to reach EURO7.3 billion. New asset classes such as asset-backed commercial paper and collateralized debt obligations will also help propel growth in the country.
France is poised to surpass 2000 levels by about 20%, as many players who issued last year will return to the market along with some new players lining up deals. Moody's also expects 2001 to be a record year for CDOs in France, as last year the market saw EURO10.6 billion in CDO issuance. Along with the continued expansion of trade receivables, ABCP is anticipated to increase as well.
Germany is also projected to surpass last year's levels of EURO25 billion, with ABCP, CDOs and residential mortgage-backed securities leading the way. A trend expected to continue in 2001 is the overhaul of existing programs to make them more cost-efficient in light of a dwindling supply of liquidity and increased competition among conduits.
In the Netherlands, growth is expected to be flat, with RMBS being the backbone of Dutch deals. Sixteen public deals came to market in the country last year, totaling EURO17.9 billion. The balance of Dutch transactions are expected to come from share-lease receivables and consumer loans.
