Asia Pacific

New funds are attracting some of the world’s biggest investors to Asian private credit.

A new Swiss-Singaporean enterprise styles itself as the world’s first digital asset bank. It is regulated, resembles the structure of a mainstream bank and has some high-visibility advisers and investors, among them Peter Wuffli. Will it work?

Despite Covid, M&A can still be done at scale within countries, even in the stricken aviation sector – though it helps to have a powerful force such as Korea Development Bank behind the scenes.

Real estate investment trusts are the mainstay of Singapore listings, a rare example of liquidity and foreign interest in an otherwise dull local bourse. Two contrasting mergers tell intriguing stories about where the Reit market goes from here.

China’s asset management industry barely existed 20 years ago. By 2030 it will be the world’s second largest. There are myriad ways for foreign firms to get it right – or horribly wrong. Here are Euromoney’s precepts for a better chance of winning – and avoiding failure.

Fear of Chinese advances with programmable money and Facebook’s Libra are pushing central banks to digital currencies, which may transform financial markets.

The decision by Chinese regulators to postpone – and potentially derail for good – Ant Group’s world-record-breaking IPO is a seismic one. It leaves no one looking good, particularly the Hangzhou-based fintech firm, and raises many more questions than it answers.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder as rare deal attracts blue-chip names

Politicians in the US and China warn of decoupling, but at a financial level the two countries are closer than ever. China needs US money and help to build its capital markets. US funds are snapping up mainland securities as they tap into the great investment opportunity of the 2020s. It’s a perfect match.

Eight years after Goldman Sachs first arranged a bond for 1MDB, it has finally concluded its settlements worldwide. Overall, it is more than $5 billion poorer for the experience, with an unquantifiable hit to its reputation. Here are the details.

The country’s new dual-circulation plans aim to slash imports and boost local investment and consumption. There’s no guarantee it will work, but Beijing is locked on this path.

Japanese conglomerates have woken up to the need to divest non-core assets; international private equity houses have plenty of dry powder with which to buy them. This happy alignment appears to have survived Covid-19, unlike other forms of cross-border M&A.

Does the move stem from China-Australia tensions?

Does a rare CDR deal in China this month herald a kick-start for the asset class?

The BRICS economies, which between them represent 40% of the world population and 32% of its GDP, are a powerful force for the private banking industry as their economic engines drive wealth creation. But they are all distinct markets with their own unique opportunities and challenges.

A pilot scheme taking place in Shenzhen this week offers a glimpse into China’s plans to build the world’s first national digital currency.

New Barclays-backed venture staffed by veterans of the Swiss firm.

No country faces a greater challenge in turning cashless than Myanmar. But KBZ’s digital wallet is making progress, under the supervision of a 29-year-old member of the family dynasty.

What can we learn from the China Investment Corporation’s latest numbers, which cover the year prior to Covid?

OCBC’s Virtual SME Campus has an expensive public face.

In 1994, Aditya Puri left Citibank to launch a new institution in a rapidly changing India. As he prepares to retire after 26 years, HDFC Bank stands apart as the strongest and most successful private-sector bank in the country.

The country is enjoying a record year in equity capital raising, built on rights issues by Reliance Industries and the country’s top banks. Behind the numbers, however, there are signs that the leaders will get stronger, while those behind may struggle.

Edelweiss has grown over 25 years into an independent and successful diversified financial services group, but it needs capital. Its decision to sell a controlling stake in its wealth management business spotlights the institution and the potential of the sector.

Nothing in China is straightforward, but everything happens for a reason.

A decade ago, European banks were mainstays on stock sales such as Ant’s – now they're conspicuous by their absence.

Bank of Singapore reports positive first year of operations for Luxembourg subsidiary.

The distributed denial of service attack on the New Zealand stock exchange highlights national financial infrastructure as a growing target for cyber criminals.

The move by China’s central bank to tighten the regulatory screws on non-financial firms that own financial assets is long overdue. That it happened in the run-up to the blockbuster IPO of Ant Group – the ever-growing digital and financial firm – is certainly curious.

China’s new ‘dual circulation’ economic system aims to slash imports while keeping export growth high. Analysts say it is simple protectionism and will only lead to more trade conflicts.

Everything points to intense pressure for Hong Kong’s markets: global pandemic, geopolitics, local unrest. Yet HKEX just had a record first half. Its chief executive explains why.