19 February 2016
As such, this not only adds a new issuer and programme to the Covered Bond Label Initiative, which currently stands at 75 issuers, but is also a first concrete step towards a more harmonised covered bond market.
This publication follows the introduction of the Harmonised Transparency Template, a new system to disclose cover pool information in a standardised way from all covered bond jurisdictions, by the Covered Bond Label Foundation. From the 1st of January 2016 onwards, with a phase-in period of one year, all labelled issuers will have to comply with the requirements of the 2016 Covered Bond Label Convention (available here), which entails publishing the HTT in order to disclose the data.
“The Covered Bond Label is a global market benchmark enhancing convergence and transparency. It also facilitates a clear definition of the qualitative and quantitative parameters of covered bonds in the Basel debate. The publication of the first non-EEA covered bond label HTT is a testimony to the global success of the Covered Bond Label.”
Luca Bertalot, Covered Bond Label Foundation (CBLF) Administrator
The HTT is a central tool for facilitating investors’ due diligence and plays a pivotal role in the Covered Bond Label’s efforts to keep pace with current and prepare for future regulatory requirements. The HTT will allow for cross-border comparison of data in a centralised way in a comparable format. It covers liability, regulatory and asset transparency, on which the Covered Bond Label is founded, offering a complete set of data directly linking every covered bond to the legislative framework under which it is issued and to the cover pool assets.
The European Covered Bond Council (ECBC) is the platform that brings together covered bond market participants including covered bond issuers, analysts, investment bankers, rating agencies and a wide range of interested stakeholders.
