Exclusive: German Finance Agency’s Diemer: 2026 Issuance Likely to Exceed €500 Billion

24 November 2025

By Marta Vilar – MADRID (Econostream) – Germany is likely to exceed €500 billion in bond issuance in 2026, according to Tammo Diemer, Executive Board member at the German Finance Agency.

In an interview with Econostream on 12 November (transcript here), Diemer said the Finance Agency was “definitely anticipating financing requirements to grow in the coming years,” and acknowledged that surpassing €500 billion in 2026 issuance was a probable outcome.

Markets should expect a similar issuance structure to previous years, he said, noting that the main difference in 2026 would be the increase in overall volumes.

Commenting on the mid-year update to the Q4 issuance plan — which surprised markets with a larger-than-expected boost to the 15-year sector — Diemer described the increase as “modest.”

Higher bond yields could stem from larger supply or stronger growth prospects, he said, suggesting a need to see the widening of the 10-year/30-year spread in a broader perspective and emphasizing that the move was affecting issuers worldwide.

Regarding long-dated issuance, Diemer said the Finance Agency’s long-term strategy would continue to set the direction into 2026.

“We are observing higher term premia, and this is one of the factors we consider when determining the maturity structure of our refinancing instrument allocation,” he added. “All details will be published in December.”

Syndications will again be part of the toolkit in 2026, Diemer said, with a focus on the long end of the curve.

Asked about ultra-long bonds and the possibility of a 50-year issue, Diemer said the Finance Agency had discussed the topic with investors up until late summer and had observed only “very isolated structural demand” for such maturities.

“Therefore, the federal government will not launch a strategic market presence in the ultra-long segment in the foreseeable future,” he said.

Green bonds were now a firmly established element of the Finance Agency’s annual funding program, and issuance in the low double-digit billion-euro range — consistent with the past six years — is expected to continue, he said.

As for whether higher issuance and rising yields could endanger Germany’s safe-haven standing, Diemer stressed that Germany “clearly” remained the euro area’s safe haven.