London, Feb 23, 2026, 09:25 GMT — Regular session
- Legal & General added 1.35%, reaching 278.5p and briefly hitting 279.5p.
- Reuters: L&G is putting up as much as $1 billion across five years for debt-for-nature swaps.
- Attention now turns to the group’s full-year numbers, due March 11.
Legal & General (LGEN.L) climbed 1.35% to 278.5 pence in early London trading on Monday, after hitting 279.5 pence, marking a new 52-week high. Shares moved between 275.8 and 279.5 pence, with volume around 1.8 million, based on delayed exchange figures.
The development came after Reuters reported that the asset manager plans to deploy as much as $1 billion over the next five years, aiming to anchor a series of “debt-for-nature” swaps in emerging markets. “This will give us the ability to be the cornerstone investor,” Jake Harper, senior investment manager at L&G, told Reuters. Ramzi Issa, Enosis Capital’s co-founder, added the objective is to “get to market quicker” and deliver “a comprehensive package” for these deals. Reuters
Debt-for-nature swaps let governments lower their interest expenses, with the freed-up cash redirected toward conservation work. Usually, these deals come with a credit guarantee, giving investors a safety net if political or policy upheaval puts repayments at risk. That backing helps the new bonds find buyers.
Investors edged into safe havens in the morning session, their broader appetite for risk unsettled by renewed questions over U.S. tariff policy.
British bond yields edged up too, with the two-year gilt yield sitting close to 3.58% on Monday. That kind of bump in yields tends to support life insurers, since returns on assets tied to their long-term liabilities get a lift. Still, portfolios can get hit if yields shift too quickly.
Aviva slipped just 0.03% to 655.2 pence, barely moving, as investors zeroed in on Legal & General’s shares instead.
Legal & General’s full-year numbers land March 11, drawing investor focus to what’s happening with capital generation and cash returns. Strategic priorities may also get an update.
Yet execution risk looms over the debt-swap push. The process drags—thick with documentation—and hinges on political-risk insurance and guarantees being there if markets get jittery.
Legal & General holds onto its reputation as a major income play, offering a dividend yield north of 7%, according to exchange data. That yield keeps interest alive—but it also means any slip in cash cover when the results drop could rattle holders.
