Singapore adds to covered bond universe

DBS Bank has propelled Singapore into the global ranks of covered bond issuers following the completion of a debut $1 billion issue from its newly established $10 billion covered bond programme.

The city state has taken a number years to get a regulatory framework in place for an asset class that now tops the 2.5 trillion $2.73 trillion mark and has proved particularly popular in Europe where it was one of the few forms of debt to remain open to bank issuers during the global financial crisis. 

Covered bonds are a type of fixed income security, which are backed by an...