What the deal is
People familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because the talks are private, said Bank of Nova Scotia is lining up a significant risk transfer referencing about $2 billion in large corporate loans. The protection would apply to the portfolio's first loss slice, and the terms could change as discussions with investors continue.
Why banks use SRTs
Significant risk transfers shift the earliest losses on a loan pool to investors in exchange for coupons that often top 10%. Issuance has surged in recent years, allowing mainly European and North American banks to move risk tied to roughly $1 trillion of loans off their books and free up regulatory capital for new lending, shareholder distributions or acquisitions.
Market context and Canadian activity
Scotiabank is one of several lenders aiming to lock in deals before year end as demand stays firm. Among the banks weighing deals that could wrap up this year are BNP Paribas SA, Societe Generale SA, Banco Santander SA and Intesa SanPaolo SpA. In a related move, BNP Paribas plans a jumbo SRT linked to €16 billion of company loans. Scotiabank representatives didn't reply to repeated requests for comment. Canadian lenders regularly tap the SRT market, and earlier this year Bank of Montreal finalized two transactions that encompassed about $5 billion of corporate loans.
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What it means for your portfolio
Banks continue to shift slices of loan exposure to investors through high-yield SRT structures, recycling capital while offering double-digit coupons to those taking first loss risk. If deal flow remains strong into year end, credit risk transfer could stay a visible pocket of yield in structured credit.
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