Euromoney November 1997
On October 3, Barclays chief executive Martin Taylor announced he was selling the equities and corporate finance divisions of his investment bank BZW. Only five weeks earlier he'd hired a high-profile banker to head BZW France. And only a year ago Taylor lured Bill Harrison from Robert Fleming to revamp the very divisions he's now put on the block. What went wrong? And what does it say about British banking's most celebrated chief executive? By Antony Currie.
Euromoney November 1997
Private equity, venture capital or merchant banking - whatever you call it - is a hot area that banks and investors are piling into in Europe, importing US-style aggression and leverage techniques. It's not quite the fear and greed of the 1980s, but a market correction could shake some of the less prudent off their perch. Peter Lee reports.
Euromoney November 1997
Investors have warmed to the planned merger between
Bayerische Vereinsbank and Bayerische Hypo-Bank because it promises substantial cost reductions. But that's only half the story. Cost-cutting could take years and Albrecht Schmidt's grandiose expansion plans will soon demand ambitious new spending. Worse still, Germany's meticulous corporate law will take months to let the merger through. Can Schmidt keep the shareholders and staff on his side until next autumn? By Laura Covill.
Euromoney November 1997
When it comes to infrastructure projects, this is the big one - an engineering feat on a par with the Great Wall of
China. But as well as flooding 600 kilometres of the Yangzi valley, the Three Gorges dam could cause a deluge of arguments among the foreign banks and contractors lining up to get involved. Jack Lowenstein reports on some early signs of trouble and picks out the
project's likely backers.
Euromoney November 1997
Turkey's banks are among the most profitable in the world. Why? Because the government rewards them royally for getting Turkish citizens to pay for its debt. But this game is coming to an end. And the banks know they must sharpen up and do some real banking. David Shirreff reports
Euromoney November 1997
At some stage, most EU countries will give up sovereignty over their own currency and will adopt the euro. So investors who have been buying European government debt will have a new decision to make: whose euro government bonds do they buy? Among the criteria will be spread margin, liquidity, flexibility and the less tangible measure: user-friendliness. Robert Minto reports.
Euromoney November 1997
Issuing a Eurobond in an east European currency and swapping the proceeds into dollars can produce rock-bottom financing costs with minimal currency risk. The only problem? Most governments don't allow it yet. But as Theodore Kim reports, deregulation could open promising new currency sectors to issuers and investor demand is already growing.
Euromoney November 1997
With the reliable income of a bond and the growth
potential of an equity, convertibles appeal to a large set of investors. The only thing holding back the growth of
Euroconvertibles has been the dearth of quality issuers. But now, as Nigel Dudley reports, new structures are bringing some major borrowers into the sector for the first time.
Euromoney November 1997
Equity markets have been booming and brokers are expanding. But it is no easy ride for Europe's stockbrokers: investors demand better research but use less of it, and most are cutting the number of firms they deal with. The Euromoney/Global Investor annual poll shows which European firms are rated best by their clients and Benjamin Ensor reports on the struggle to join the small elite of truly international brokers.
