Private equity in the Gulf is developing fast but investors need to seek out experienced firms.

The price that Macquarie was prepared to pay for Thames Water graphically illustrates the impact that infrastructure funds are having on this sector.

Tata Steel’s bid for Corus is at the vanguard of corporate India buying cross-border assets.

Yucho privatization is a big ask for Japan’s financial sector.

With falling returns for hedge funds, it looks as if a trend might be developing for their employees to return to less risky, better remunerated roles in investment banks.

It’s somewhat ironic that Dresdner has an F1 car in the building. After all, motor racing is associated with glamour, sex appeal and life in the fast lane – all the things that Dresdner is not.

ICBC listing might set a new record but investors should tread with caution.

End investors and hedge fund managers are increasingly concerned about those funds of funds that take a hot money view, rapidly switching cash in and out of hedge funds. Some of the horror stories risk tainting the entire industry. Helen Avery reports.

CHAMPAGNE CORKS WERE popping in Lisbon to herald the smooth passage of Portugal’s covered bond legislation. So Europe has yet another covered bond market, news that will have been greeted with a certain amount of resignation in Italy by both banks and regulators. It all looks so easy, but somehow Italy has made it look very, very difficult.

HSBC has transferred all of its UK mortgage assets into a single pool, which should cut costs for its new covered bond and RMBS programmes.

Created in 1961 to supplement the pensions of military personnel, Turkish pension fund Oyak has traditionally delivered returns by holding majority stakes in Turkish companies. Profiting from the economy’s strong growth rates, the addition of a fixed-income portfolio has enabled the fund to ride the volatility of the market. Florian Neuhof reports.

A huge influx of liquidity has made the collateralized loan obligation almost standard fare for Europe’s institutional investors. But as they snap up CLO equity and new credit opportunity funds, they need to choose carefully.

Chernukhin gobbles up Poultry property

The hedge fund industry is now institutional. In the US, 5% of the groups run 65% of the money, while in Europe concentration is even greater. To keep up, prime brokers need multi-asset skills, cross-margining and the IT to match. Dog walking may not be available any longer.

Longer-term investments can antagonize investors with shorter-term views. Ritchie Capital looks to have found a way to defuse the conflict.

At the end of September Petrobras, the Brazilian state-owned oil and gas company, completed dollar and yen issues within days of each other – its first such deals in two years. CFO Almir Barbassa talks to Chloe Hayward about why the company has suddenly become so active again.