KfW, the German development bank, has launched the year’s biggest convertible bond issue as it seeks a way to unload more of its shareholding in Deutsche Telekom, the part-privatised telecoms company.

The five-year, €3bn ($4.6bn) bond, which will convert into DT shares, is being sold months before an existing €5bn convertible matures. That bond, issued by KfW in 2003, is unlikely to result in issuance of DT stock because of the company’s low share price.