NZX Debt Market

Corporate bonds NZ: listed company debt and what it pays

New Zealand corporate bonds pay more than government debt because you are lending to a company rather than the Crown. How much more depends almost entirely on what that company does for a living.

Highest indicative corporate yield here

6.98%

Indicative yield to maturity only — it moves with market pricing and is not guaranteed. We'll email you the live rate sheet and the free NZ Bond Buyer's Guide.

Get these rates emailed to me
IssueYield to maturity

Listed New Zealand corporate issues. All figures are indicative, in New Zealand dollars, as at 2 Sept 2026. Yield to maturity moves with the market price you pay and will differ from the coupon. Confirm current terms in the issuer's offer documents before investing.

Corporate bonds pay the highest yields in New Zealand dollars. Ask which issues have retail parcels available this week.

Send me the rate sheet

Reading the credit ladder

At the safest end sit the regulated network monopolies — Chorus and Vector. Their revenue is set by the Commerce Commission under a price-quality path, which produces cash flow so predictable that bond investors accept a lower yield for it. The risk you are taking is regulatory, not commercial.

Next come the gentailers and infrastructure owners: Meridian, Mercury, Contact, Genesis, the two airports, Port of Tauranga. These are investment-grade rated, own irreplaceable physical assets, and carry moderate cyclical exposure — passenger numbers, log volumes, hydro inflows.

At the higher-yielding end sit the unrated issuers, most visibly Infratil and the retirement village developers Ryman and Summerset. The extra one to one-and-a-half percent is not free money: it compensates for the absence of a credit rating, a large construction pipeline, and cash flow that depends on the residential property market.

Kiwibank's subordinated notes sit in a category of their own. They pay more than the bank's term deposits precisely because they rank behind depositors and can absorb losses if the bank hits non-viability. Read the terms sheet on anything labelled subordinated.

What to check before you buy a corporate bond

Seniority. Senior secured ranks ahead of senior unsecured, which ranks ahead of subordinated. Most listed New Zealand retail bonds are senior unsecured; Argosy's green bonds are one of the few secured issues.

Rating, or the absence of one. Unrated does not mean bad, but it does mean nobody independent has published a view, so the work falls to you.

Call dates. Some bonds — particularly bank capital and capital notes — can be repaid early at the issuer's option. That caps your gain if interest rates fall.

Liquidity. Listed does not mean liquid. Smaller lines can be slow and expensive to exit, so the safest assumption is that you hold to maturity.

Corporate bonds are quoted on yield, not coupon. Bond yields explained covers why the two numbers diverge and which one determines your actual return.

Free · no obligation

Find out which corporate bonds are open now

up to 6.98%

Highest indicative yield to maturity on this page. Yields move with market pricing and are not guaranteed.

Retail parcels in listed New Zealand corporate bonds come and go. Tell us the yield you're after and a licensed broker comes back with what's actually available today — plus the free NZ Bond Buyer's Guide.

  • The free NZ Bond Buyer's Guide, emailed to you
  • Current indicative yields and offer documents
  • No cost, no obligation, no application made

By sending this you agree that BuyBonds.co.nz may contact you about this enquiry and pass your details to a licensed New Zealand or Australian broker or provider so they can send you offer documents. This is an enquiry, not an application — nothing is bought or sold here. We never sell your details. See our Privacy Policy and Data Collection notices. Bonds are not guaranteed and your capital is at risk.