May 2006
| Euromoney May 2006 Central Asia, a stronghold for dictators, poverty and corruption, doesn’t at first glance seem to offer fertile ground for high investment returns. But this is precisely what some of the region’s more intrepid investors hope to find and profit from. Kathryn Wells spends a week on the road with two hedge fund managers, on the lookout for opportunities on this new frontier. |
Euromoney May 2006
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon wants a clear, new structure for the bank, without personal fiefdoms and superstars. But what does this mean for one of its most important franchises – the structured credit business that JPMorgan once dominated – now in the hands of a new generation of managers? Alex Chambers reports.
Euromoney May 2006
The authorities of Saudi Arabia have used the stock market to redistribute wealth, but in doing so they helped inflate a bubble. The inevitable crash has aroused some discontent. Rather then rushing to bail the market out, policymakers should use the sell-off as a spur to force out the manipulators and build a sounder infrastructure by forging ahead with privatization, licensing new investment banks and brokers and fostering institutional asset management. The pain of the sell-off will eventually pass, because Saudi Arabia is booming.
Euromoney May 2006
International banks have been encouraged to re-enter the Saudi project finance market with big-ticket deals backed by a relatively healthy risk environment and more solid financial guarantees than in the past. Nigel Dudley reports.
Euromoney May 2006
The most representative annual FX poll that Euromoney has ever conducted examines a market in which technology shapes the present and the future, and the buy side is unwilling to break the bank when buying services. In a growing market that demands huge expenditure and promises little return, banks have to position themselves well to stay in the game. Florian Neuhof reports.
Euromoney May 2006
Ever decreasing spreads and soaring volumes suggest that there is nothing wrong with the huge global foreign exchange market. However, many leading market participants are starting to worry about the possible imposition of best-execution regulations.
Euromoney May 2006
It´s the new Big Bang in equity trading. As research and execution are unbundled, and as clients increasingly access markets directly, brokers need to find new ways to keep their institutional clients. Algorithmic trading is one way. It cuts execution costs, adds alpha and gives the creative brokers – those able to design flexible, customized algorithms – a new way to keep in the execution business, for now.
Euromoney May 2006
After a few years of dormancy, convertible bond issuance in emerging Europe and the Middle East is picking up again. A few innovative and highly structured deals have priced this year and bankers are confident of more transactions. Sudip Roy reports on factors driving the activity and the types of investors involved.
Euromoney May 2006
The enormous growth potential of the Turkish banking sector is attracting a lot of attention but the mortgage business, one of the industry’s biggest attractions, is suffering from profit shortfalls because of a lack of well-matched funding opportunities. Covered bond issuance and the imminent reawakening of the Turkish lira corporate bond market could provide a much-needed boost. Peter Koh reports.
Euromoney May 2006
The rush of foreign investment into central and eastern Europe has undoubtedly improved standards of corporate governance. But the results of this year’s Euromoney survey of the best companies in the region reveal that some state-owned companies that might prove difficult to acquire also rate highly for their management standards. Lawrence White reports.
Euromoney May 2006
Russian companies are not renowned for adherence to international standards in corporate governance but several from the Russian Federation are looking to list their stock domestically and abroad. How are these companies dealing with the standards demanded by international investors? Kathryn Wells reports.
Euromoney May 2006
The managers of a new equity fund say the big re-rating of Russia is over. It is time for a new type of fund that can prosper in a downturn, they argue. Julian Evans reports.
Euromoney May 2006
Three years ago, the Romanian government had to admit defeat in its plans to privatize Banca Comerciala Romana, the country’s largest bank. By last autumn, though, when bidding was reopened, nine banks submitted bids and the bank was eventually sold at 5.8 times book value – a record at that time in central Europe. So what changed?
Euromoney May 2006
While some analysts worry about the Austrian bank’s effect on prices in central and eastern Europe, others have a great deal of confidence in CEO Andreas Treichl and his X factor. Julian Evans reports.
Euromoney May 2006
With EU accession for Croatia still a few years away, the country’s financial authorities are focusing their attention on developing the local bond market. Oonagh Leighton reports.
Euromoney May 2006
Foreign and local banks are preparing for intense competition to win market share in one of Europe’s fastest-growing financial sectors. Those not already in the field are likely to find this an expensive business. Nick Saywell reports.
Euromoney May 2006
Radoslav Jelasic, governor of the National Bank of Serbia, tells Nick Saywell about the challenges facing his country’s banking industry as levels of foreign ownership rise. The main issues now are transparency and supervision rather than solvency and liquidity.
Euromoney May 2006
The Kazakh authorities would like to establish Almaty as a regional financial centre but further reform and market development is necessary first. Patrick Gill reports.
Euromoney May 2006
The central Asian republic may still be developing suitable funding channels, but a pick-up in deals is expected, given an economy that continues to grow and an appropriate legal framework. Patrick Gill reports.
Euromoney May 2006
Hybrid structured products – cross-asset-class investments – are finally starting to make a significant impact with investors. Banks report increasing demand from those looking to trade several market views via a single instrument to instantly reap the benefits of portfolio diversification. But with increasing sales come new challenges, such as the pricing of correlation. How are hybrid structured product makers faring?
Euromoney May 2006
It’s Vietnam, but not as we’ve known it. The country’s financial markets have promised much in the past and delivered little but disappointment. Reforms are now for real and initially most apparent in the banks. Significant opportunities are there for the taking. Chris Leahy reports.
Euromoney May 2006
Vietnam’s first flirtation with western fund management ended in an embarrassing exit for all but the die-hard few. Now that money is queuing to get in again, those who stuck it out through the downturn advise caution. Chris Leahy reports.
Euromoney May 2006
After having been unseated as CEO of Deutsche Börse by hedge funds, Werner Seifert has concluded that the hectic race for alpha will destroy capitalism. Euromoney looks at Seifert’s passionate espousal of good old corporate values.
Euromoney May 2006
(May 2006) It is early days but US issuers are seriously considering covered bond issuance. There are economic and regulatory reasons why this makes sense.
Euromoney May 2006
BNP Paribas has topped the investment grade section of the Euromoney credit research poll for the past three years but this success has not stood in the way of a shift to a new research model.
Euromoney May 2006
Will US issuers start to look at Europe’s institutional markets?
Euromoney May 2006
ResCap was able to pay back its domestic debt owed to GMAC ahead of market expectations following a $3.5 billion multi-tranche transaction ($1 billion of three-year sub, and $2.5 billion of senior – split into $1.75 billion of seven-year and $750 million of three-year).
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
UK non-conforming mortgage lender Kensington Mortgages has shown how well the monoline, securitization-funded business model can work. Group treasurer Mark Wilten tells Louise Bowman why its risk profile has moved away from sub-prime lending and denies that the company is for sale, despite persistent rumours to the contrary.
Euromoney May 2006
Structured credit investors rushing to list residual income funds need the capacity to accurately price this esoteric risk.
Euromoney May 2006
Investors will have to wait for deals to burn out before prepayments in European CMBS transactions begin to ease.
Euromoney May 2006
More challenging asset classes will require a different approach to Italian public sector risk.
Euromoney May 2006
New valuation models have underscored the need for accurate mark-to-market pricing for credit derivatives.
Euromoney May 2006
Germany’s True Sale Initiative received some much-needed publicity last month when the first CLO to be structured under the programme emerged from Dresdner Bank.
Euromoney May 2006
News of the first RMBS transaction out of Saudi Arabia has focused attention on the potential for real estate-backed issuance from the region.
Euromoney May 2006
In recent weeks significant moves have taken place in the higher echelons of European structured finance.
Euromoney May 2006
The New York Stock Exchange needs to have its hybrid system ready before Reg NMS takes effect but it has only just completed Phase I. It might not have too much to worry about, though, as many other market participants are unprepared and a delay is widely expected.
Euromoney May 2006
“Debt providers are becoming more selective about the opportunities they are willing to support and are now concentrating on companies with good forward earnings visibility”- James Stewart, ECI
Euromoney May 2006
Equity derivatives dealers have set up an industry group to improve trading efficiency and iron out operational issues in their market.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
ITG and Merrill Lynch have joined forces in a joint venture called “Block Alert, powered by Posit” that will create a global block order crossing service.
Euromoney May 2006
Looks to have got bargain with its $775 million purchase of spot broker.
Euromoney May 2006
There’s widespread agreement that there are too many portals providing FX prices but consolidation has been slow. Is the market going to stop waiting and roll out multi-asset platforms instead?
Euromoney May 2006
According to both EBS and FXall, the first quarter of 2006 was the busiest ever for FX trading. Talking purely about spot, EBS says daily activity in the quarter averaged $132 billion, a 2.3% increase on the same period in 2005.
Euromoney May 2006
Deutsche Bank is about to launch an entirely new FX trading platform aimed squarely at attracting flow from the retail end of the market.
Euromoney May 2006
Fund managers with medium-size AUMs can be successful.
Euromoney May 2006
London is seen as the property hotspot in 2006.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
As an increasing number of hedge fund managers chase similar strategies in a bid to make returns, Bryan Williams asks why more aren’t looking at municipal bond arbitrage.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Convertibles have regained popularity in M&A because of the types of deals being done.
Euromoney May 2006
Uses of securitization to fund US buyouts is getting ever more innovative.
Euromoney May 2006
Is there enough room for both sorts of hybrid in the European acquisition finance market?
Euromoney May 2006
Few companies are pursuing leveraged share buybacks, but pressure from activist investors is putting the issue back on the agenda and there could be a lot more deals in the next 12 months.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
State Bank of India has decided to enter India’s rapidly growing market for securitized assets.
Euromoney May 2006
Australian regulator’s charges cast doubt on legitimacy of prop trading.
Euromoney May 2006
The bridge loan Softbank has taken out to acquire Vodafone in Japan is enormous, negotiated on onerous terms and costly by Japanese standards.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
China-focused forestry company falls behind in land acquisition.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Bank of Alexandria privatization process started.
Euromoney May 2006
The long-awaited privatization of Svyazinvest, Russia’s national fixed-line telecoms operator, could finally get under way within the next two months.
Euromoney May 2006
BMA chief confident about region’s fundamentals.
Euromoney May 2006
Q&A with Bill Browder, founder and CEO of Hermitage Capital Management, the biggest foreign investor in Russia.
Euromoney May 2006
Azerbaijan Electronics, one of the country’s largest energy utilities, has sold a $1 million one-year bond, the first from an industrial issuer in the country. The bond yields 14.5% and was issued at par.
Euromoney May 2006
Austrian bank CA IB has launched REX, the first publicly available real estate index to cover emerging Europe and the closely related Austrian market.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Central bank to change tier 1 regulation in two months.
Euromoney May 2006
US bank is surprising frontrunner in league tables.
Euromoney May 2006
What’s going on at Merrill Lynch? The investment bank has posted impressive overall first-quarter results, as revenues hit the $8 billion mark, but the Latin American debt capital markets desk seems to be lagging.
Euromoney May 2006
In his last interview as director of public credit for Colombia, Felipe Sardi talks to Lawrence White about the strategies his successor will inherit, his efforts to increase the liquidity of Colombian securities and his plans for the federation of coffee growers.
Euromoney May 2006
Latin America is no stranger to banking crises. Every so often a banking system will implode, and depositors will lose all or some of their money.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Goldman Sachs has reshuffled its Latin American investment banking team by naming Eduardo Centola and Martin Werner as co-heads.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Bankers reckon convertible bonds will be a product to watch in the developing world.
Euromoney May 2006
Until discrepancies between index auction prices and single-name CDS recovery rates can be ironed out, investors should sell recovery basis risk.
Euromoney May 2006
Proponents of European high yield think covenants for issuers should be relaxed if the market is to survive.
Euromoney May 2006
A compulsory minimum free float for banks listing in Russia is illogical, hard to police and might not be in investors’ best interests.
Euromoney May 2006
The removal of restrictions on trans-national M&A are fundamental to EU principles. Turkey is setting an example.
Euromoney May 2006
Competitors gloating over the firm’s current predicament are likely to be sorely disappointed.
Euromoney May 2006
In this edition, don't miss: Abigail's opinion of Lehman's Board of Directors and of Jeremy Isaacs' realm; her advice to Bank of America on investment banking; the details of HSBC's Studzinski's glam 50th birthday party; and hats off to Rainer Stephan, chairman of Barclays in Germany.
Euromoney May 2006
Forget the stymied constitution, Parisian événements, electoral tangles and government overspending – eurozone corporates are doing just fine and consumers are picking up on the mood.
Euromoney May 2006
Is the single-minded pursuit of alpha as smart a strategy as conventional wisdom would suggest?
Euromoney May 2006
The ECB sets great store by the transparency of its decision-making process and the clarity of its communication with the outside world. ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet was reminding us of this again last month.
Euromoney May 2006
Regarding Euromoney's March 2006 cover story: “Inside Argentina’s financial crisis” written by Guillermo Nielsen, Argentina’s former finance secretary.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
At the start of April, Chuck Prince, chairman and CEO of Citigroup, came to Riyadh to lobby the Saudi finance ministry, central bank and capital markets regulator to let the US firm back into the kingdom less than two years after Citigroup sold off its 20% stake in Samba (previously Saudi American Bank). It was one of the early big decisions of Prince’s tenure as CEO and signalled the end of Citigroup’s presence in a country where it had operated since 1955.
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006
Euromoney May 2006