Deutsche Bahn is the German state railway company formed from the merger of the East German and West German railways in the 1990s. Annual revenue is around €40 billion euro so it is no minnow. Gross financial debt was around €22.5 billion at the end of 2016.
After a two year absence from the kangaroo market, Deutsche Bahn has issued $600 million worth of bonds. It was divided between two fixed rate tranches; a $425 million tranche of September 2024s and a $175 million tranche of September 2027s.
Initial guidance for the deal was 85bps and 95bps over each tranche’s respective swap rates. It turned out to be on the money and final pricing was set in line with the guidance.
The bonds it has on issue are mostly denominated in euro but it also has bonds denominated in Swiss francs, sterling, Singapore dollars, yen, Swedish krona, Hong Kong dollars, Norwegian krone but surprisingly very little in U.S. dollars.
This latest transaction has been described as Deutsche’s inaugural transaction in the kangaroo market but it appears Deutsche has been here before. In late 2015, its subsidiary, Deutsche Bahn Finance, issued $180 million October 2025 bonds.
Deutsche Bahn is rated AA- by Standard & Poor’s and Aa1 by Moody’s.