Medard: there’s hope for debt markets

There’s room for optimism in debt and capital markets, despite tough conditions impacting confidence among issuers and investors, according to ANZ MD Australia & PNG Tammy Medard.

Speaking at the 2022 ANZ Debt Conference in Sydney, Medard said while volatility seen across the market was “unsettling”, the truth was issuers and investors have cash on hand.

“Australian banks have liquidity and are well capitalised,” she said. “Customers are entering this period of volatility with strong balance sheets, and investors have cash to invest.”

It was clear inflation and rising rates would continue to bite in the short term, Medard said, and the conflict in Europe added uncertainty to global gas prices and food supplies. But here in Australia, participants have the strong fundamentals to return to capital markets when the time is right, she said.

“Savings accounts are high,” she said. “And at ANZ, both our retail and business customers are sitting on more cash today than they were before the pandemic.”

Around 300 people attended the ANZ event - including 100 investors and 130 issuers - which saw a handful of panels and presentations including leading speakers such as renowned historian and author Niall Ferguson.

Medard said current market volatility underpinned the importance of continuous direct communication amongst debt market participants, particularly at events like the conference, where they’re able to address the realities of what they’re facing and debunk speculation. 

“This conference facilitates the ease and flow of debt markets through direct communication between issuers and investors,” she said.