DETROIT: JPMorgan Chase & Co sold US$6bil of investment-grade bonds, kicking off issuance by major Wall Street banks after releasing fourth-quarter of financial year 2025 (4Q25) results.
The bank priced notes in three parts spanning six to 11 years, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The longest portion of the deal – a US$3bil note maturing in 2037 – will pay 0.76 percentage point above Treasuries, said the person, who asked not to be identified because they are not authorised to speak publicly. That’s roughly a quarter-point less than initial pricing discussions.
The deal kicked off what is expected to be a busy month for bank debt sales.
The Big Six are seen issuing about US$35bil this month, according to a December estimate from Barclays Plc, with volume likely reaching US$55bil by quarter-end.
The biggest US banks typically issue investment-grade bonds shortly after releasing quarterly results. JPMorgan sold US$26bil of high-grade bonds in 2025, including US$8bil last January.
Wednesday’s bond sale comes amid slower activity after last week marked the fourth-busiest ever for US investment-grade issuance.
Seven firms sold a combined US$12.65bil on Wednesday, with JPMorgan accounting for nearly half that, putting this week’s total at US$24.45bil.
That’s less than half of what dealers projected for all of this week.
JPMorgan reported that its investment-banking fees unexpectedly fell in the 4Q25, missing the firm’s own guidance from just last month as revenue from both underwriting and advising on mergers declined.
There was a surprise 2% decline in debt-underwriting fees with analysts expecting a 19% gain. — Bloomberg
