HBOS has found buyers for £500 million of mortgage-backed bonds in the first successful mortgage securitisation in Britain since the credit crunch hit last July. Seven institutional investors, including insurers and other banks, snapped up the bonds in a sign that the big freeze in the securitisation market may be starting to thaw.

Michael Spencer, the influential chief executive of Icap, the interdealer broker, which enables banks and other institutions to trade anonymously in bonds and derivatives, added to the warming sentiment yesterday, saying that the worst of the financial crunch was probably over. He said: “I think we have in likelihood seen the worst of the financial crisis.” But he added that the wider economy would still suffer.

That view was echoed by George Soros, the financier, who said that “the acute phase [of the financial crisis] is behind us” but added that the economic fallout in Britain was going to get worse.

HBOS had to pay an interest rate of 0.85 per cent over the benchmark three-month Libor to tempt buyers of the bonds, which were backed by AAA-rated British home loans. Before the crunch, the spread on similar bonds was as low as 0.1 per cent. HBOS said: “We had good interest in the issue. It was about testing the market. It was successful because of the strength of our name.”

The successful issue could encourage other banks back into the securitisation market, with Nationwide Building Society, Abbey and even Northern Rock tipped as possible issuers.

Mr Spencer said that the low point of the credit crunch had been in March with the near-collapse of Bear Stearns and its rescue by JPMorgan. Icap makes money in turbulent times as customers flock to use its derivatives and other hedging instruments. Icap enjoyed steadily rising volumes since the crisis began, but suffered a 12 per cent fall in electronic trading in April, as against March, a record month. Mr Spencer would not give a May trend and cautioned against reading too much into one month, given March’s record figures.

Three-month sterling Libor was unchanged at 5.85 per cent as stock markets plunged, partly because of traders taking profits in resources stocks. The FTSE 100 closed 185 points down at 6,192.