Q1 2025 – Bond Market Update
Norwegian Banks, Municipalitites and Mortage Institutions
Q1 2025: Strong Activity from Municipal Issuers and High Volumes from Mortgage Institutions
In this market update, we take a closer look at recent developments in the Norwegian investment grade (IG) bond market, focusing on financial and public sector issuers – municipalities, banks, and mortgage institutions – while excluding corporate issuers outside the financial and public sector.
Strong Quarter for Municipalities
The municipal segment delivered a particularly strong quarter, with 70 new ISINs and a total issuance volume of NOK 23.8 billion. This represents one of the highest quarterly issuance levels we have observed from Norwegian municipalities.
A Calm Start for the Banking Sector
Although NOK-denominated volumes remained relatively stable, the number of new ISINs issued by savings and commercial banks dropped to its lowest level in 11 quarters. This suggests a more cautious start to the year for banks.
Mortgage Institutions Leading in Volume
Mortgage institutions issued approximately NOK 139 billion in bonds under NO ISIN in Q1 2025 – among the highest volumes seen in recent years. The number of new ISINs remained steady, indicating solid and consistent demand.
Green Bond Slowdown, but Leadership Shift
Green bond issuance declined in Q1 2025, with a total volume of around NOK 2 billion, primarily from savings banks. Interestingly, mortgage institutions have now taken the lead in terms of volume per green ISIN, despite issuing fewer green bonds overall.
About the Data
Figures in this report are sourced from Stamdata, one of Nordic Trustee’s market data services. This report forms part of our ongoing data analytics work to deliver timely market updates on trends and issuance activity across the Nordic bond market.