One of the more intriguing fixed-income stories of the year is a McDonald’s bond, which seems almost paradoxical. And yet, here we are. The fast-food chain, which is more well-known for its drive-throughs and quarterly earnings than its debt issuance strategy, was one of the multinational corporations that surreptitiously entered Canada’s bond market in 2025. It joined Citigroup and an expanding list of multinationals lured north by a combination of lower borrowing costs and an investor base that is becoming more and more interested in assets that don’t have a US dollar return address.
Maple bonds are the tool driving this trend. The structural equivalent of a “Yankee bond” in New York or a “Bulldog bond” in London, it is a Canadian-dollar bond issued in Canada’s domestic market by a foreign borrower, but it has a unique appeal that has grown significantly in the current environment. According to LSEG data, Maple bond issuance reached $16.32 billion by September 25, 2025, slightly exceeding the $16.28 billion raised in 2023 and already surpassing the $13 billion issued throughout 2024. That acceleration is significant. Not even a blip.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| What is a Maple bond? | A Canadian-dollar bond issued in Canada’s domestic market by a foreign borrower — the Canadian equivalent of a “Yankee bond” in the US or “Bulldog bond” in the UK |
| Key 2025 issuers | Citigroup · McDonald’s · NextEra Energy Capital Holdings (C$2 billion — one of the largest single Maple bond deals of 2025) |
| Why Canada? | Lower borrowing costs than USD markets · Strong investor appetite · Diversification away from US dollar assets amid Trump trade policy uncertainty |
| Data source | Issuance figures via LSEG data cited by Reuters, September 29, 2025 |
| UK relevance | Canadian banks have historically tapped the UK covered bond market; currency swap markets allow issuers to arbitrage borrowing costs across GBP and CAD |
| 1.00 Canadian dollar = approximately 0.73 US dollars (Bank of Canada) | |
| Broader context | Growing global trend of de-dollarisation · Investors seeking stable, non-US fixed income · Canadian monetary stability long regarded as an anchor for cross-border bond flows |
| Risk factors | CAD/GBP currency exposure · Liquidity differences vs gilts · Canadian domestic index inclusion rules still evolving for Maple bonds |
As sterling navigates its own post-Brexit challenges, UK savers and institutional investors are beginning to see the Canadian market as something worth learning rather than something to leave to experts. Governor Andrew Bailey and four of his colleagues backed the Bank of England’s decision to lower its base rate from 4.00 percent to 3.75 percent in December 2025, while four others favored holding it.
In addition to making yield-hunting in foreign markets feel less like speculation and more like prudent diversification, that split vote reveals some of the uncertainty still permeating British monetary policy. As Andrew Parker of McCarthy Tetrault pointed out in September, Canadian rates have been more alluring. Parker remarked, “There was just one deal after another this summer,” referring to the rapidity of issuance in a market that most international borrowers would have rejected a few years ago in favor of euros or sterling.
It’s possible that factors other than interest rates are at play here. The dollar is the other engine in this situation. Even seasoned fixed-income investors characterize the degree of uncertainty brought into dollar-denominated markets by U.S. trade policy under President Trump as exceptional. Investors become more serious about finding alternatives when the world’s reserve currency becomes politically complex, such as when tariff announcements and retaliatory actions can move Treasury yields by double digits in a single session.
With its close proximity to the border, strong economic ties, and generally stable monetary system, Canada provides something that is currently difficult to find: predictability. Milton Friedman noted decades ago in a different context that there has never been a foreign exchange crisis in a country with a flexible exchange rate because the Canadian dollar is free to fluctuate, the central bank is autonomous, and the statement feels particularly pertinent today.
The currency swap aspect is another factor to take into account, particularly for investors in the UK. The mechanics of currency swaps enable investors and borrowers to access yields across GBP and CAD in ways that mitigate some of the exchange rate risk, and Canadian banks have been involved in the UK covered bond market for many years. However, it’s important to be realistic about what’s left: the CAD-GBP rate is dynamic, and a UK saver purchasing a Maple bond is still assuming Canadian dollar risk in relation to sterling. It shifts. It’s moved. The argument in favor of Maple bonds is not that currency risk vanishes, but rather that the yield premium and non-US dollar diversification make that risk worthwhile in a way that it might not have been during more stable US markets.
Observing this issuance flow build up month after month gives the impression that something structural is changing rather than just cycling. A C$2 billion loan was issued by NextEra Energy Capital Holdings. A decade ago, investor appetite for a Canadian-dollar instrument from an American energy company would have seemed unrealistic. However, in 2025, the market saw one of the biggest single deals in its history with the purchase of a Maple bond. That is a signal, not a trade. The question of where the steady, predictable yields are is causing global capital to actively reorganize, and Canada consistently comes up in the response.
The extent of this is still unknown. Bond markets are cyclical, and as more issuers enter the market and demand compresses spreads, Canada’s current premium may decrease. However, the Maple bond market in 2025 is at least worth a thorough examination for UK savers who are prepared to look beyond the well-known terrain of gilts and domestic fixed income. Even before McDonald’s arrived to verify it, the numbers garnered that much attention.
