CEB issues USD 1bn 3.750% 5-year Global Benchmark

Highlights

• On Wednesday, 7 January 2026, the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) returned to the primary market for the second consecutive day, successfully pricing a USD 1 billion 5-year Global Benchmark Bond.
• Despite a busy primary market, the transaction achieved outstanding traction, securing the second-largest indications of interest ($4.8bn) and second-largest orderbook ($6.1bn at close) in the CEB’s USD history.
• Demand came from a globally diversified, high-quality investor base, reaffirming the depth of support for CEB. Central banks and official institutions were predominant, accounting for 59% of allocations.
• The new 5-year priced at SOFR MS+31 bps (UST+6.8bps equivalent) after having tightened by 3bps over the course of execution.
• The successes of CEB’s back-to-back GBP and USD benchmark transactions highlight the ongoing strength of investor appetite for the name across currencies and maturities.
• On Tuesday, January 6 at 10:50 CET, the CEB announced the mandate for its USD Global Benchmark, with IPTs released at SOFR MS+34bps area.
• The transaction drew strong interest from the outset, with momentum reinforced by a constructive European opening the following morning. Books officially opened and the spread was set at SOFR MS+31bps, supported by indications of interest totalling $4.8bn – the second largest USD IOIs ever for the issuer.
• Less than two hours later, as the orderbook surpassed $5.6bn, the deal size was set at $1bn.
• Despite the large and high-quality orderbook, the issuer opted to cap the size at $1bn to preserve flexibility for future funding needs, including the potential issuance of an inaugural SOFR FRN bond later this year.
• The new line priced at 15:06 CET, offering a coupon of 3.750% and a semi-annual yield of 3.757%, equivalent to a re-offer price of 99.968% and a spread of 6.8bps over the UST 3 ⅝ due Dec-2030.
• By geographic distribution, most allocations went towards the EMEA region (41%), followed by the Americas (36%) and Asia (23%).
• In terms of investor type, Central Banks & Official Institutions were the largest investor component (59%), followed by Banks (27%), Fund Managers (11%) and Other (3%).

Distribution statistics

By geography
Asia: 23%
EMEA: 41%
Americas: 36%

By investor type
CB/OI: 59%
Banks: 27%
FM: 11%
Other: 3%

For full technical details of the transaction, please click here.