Ukraine lives down to its reputation and mandates zero fee deal

There was a collective roll of the eyes among emerging market bankers yesterday (Tuesday) when Ukraine mandated BNP Paribas, JP Morgan and Standard Bank to lead its forthcoming $400m issue. While the sovereign had indicated that experience was an important factor in deciding the mandate, it was nonetheless the three banks that pitched fees of zero cents that won the mandate, bankers said. Elsewhere in the sovereign arena, Turkey is also eyeing the market for what some say may be a tap of its euro 2014 bonds, although others think a dollar tap more likely.