When European leaders set up the €440bn ($583bn) European Financial Stability Facility following the Greek crisis in June, they hoped it would never have to be used. But the Irish bailout has dashed that hope. If the rescue is finalised in its current form, the EFSF will have to issue bonds to lend as much as €17.7bn to Ireland—with the likelihood of much greater issuance if other eurozone members have to be bailed out. But who will buy these bonds? And how will they be priced?

EFSF officials led by chief executive Klaus Regling have met around 150 investors, ranging from central banks to pension funds. But the EFSF is a complex beast. To win a triple-A credit rating, eurozone governments had to offer guarantees for 120% of the amount issued and agree to keep some of the proceeds as a cash buffer. Adding complexity, the guarantor structure changes the more countries tap the facility, raising the risk that the market will differentiate between tranches of EFSF debt, potentially reducing liquidity.