Doing the right thing

HBOS has been at the forefront of structuring mortgage finance deals in the European markets. During recent turmoil, the bank has twice issued covered bonds in a bid to reopen that sector. It seems that head of securitisation and covered bonds at Bank of Scotland Treasury Robert Plehn is happy to play the role of leader in troubled times. He spoke to Rob Mannix

The celebrated consultant, Peter Drucker, said management is doing things right but leadership is doing the right things. The past months have seen the UK's biggest mortgage lender, HBOS, revise its funding plans like many others. But its actions during the subprime crisis have demonstrated a readiness to help the market back to its feet that would have met Drucker's approval.

In mid-October, HBOS sought to reopen the UK covered bond market with a EUR2 billion seven-year deal priced at 16 basis