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Euroclear faced up to the challenges of the new landscape for the clearing and settlements business in Europe this week when it announced plans to sever its close ties to its founder, JP Morgan, and form a new bank owned by European market participants. The new reality of the European securities market, in which there is one currency but more than 30 different clearing and settlement systems, has prompted Euroclear to take over JP Morgan's operating and banking roles in the system.

A resurgence in Eurodollar issuance characterised the market this week as swap and bond spreads continued to widen, allowing prime issuers to tap the market at historically wide levels. Denmark provided investors with the rare opportunity to put pure sovereign debt onto their books with a $500m six year bond via Goldman Sachs. The deal benefited from the kingdom's recent upgrade to triple-A by Moody's.

n Argenta Nederland NV Guarantor: Argenta Spaarbanken NV, Argenta Société d'Investissements SA

Freddie Mac has adopted a new marketing strategy for its Reference Note programme in a bid to provide more transparency to its product and to expand its international investor base. Freddie Mac announced in July that it would adopt a regular issuance calendar for its five and 10 year reference note programme, with the 10 year deals to be issued in March and September. The first 10 year deal in the calendar will be launched shortly - a $4bn issue has been mandated to Credit Suisse First Boston, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley Dean Witter.

Elf Aquitaine added new sparkle to an already bubbling French primary equity market this week when it announced plans for one of the largest corporate secondary share offerings on record.

ARRANGERS SEB signed the Skr1.6bn revolver for Hotellus International on August 31, after increasing it from Skr1.5bn. Coming in as co-arranger is MeritaNordbanken, taking Skr500m, and the participants, taking Skr300m, are LB Kiel and Svenska Handelsbanken. SEB also takes Skr500m.

India A number of international project finance banks are putting together bids for the arranging mandate on the North Madras phase three coalfired independent power project.

India A number of international project finance banks are putting together bids for the arranging mandate on the North Madras phase three coalfired independent power project.

ING has the mandate as sole arranger for a Dfl 3.5bn equity finance package for Vedior NV, which is buying Select Appointments. The deal is split into two parts, worth Dfl 3.15bn and £109m (Dfl 350m). The first part is broken into three tranches. Tranche 'A' is a Dfl 650m equity bridge. Tranche 'B' is a Dfl 2bn share offer consideration bridge. Tranche 'C' is a Dfl 500m working capital revolver.

US retailer Safeway Inc will next week head an expected $30bn to $60bn deluge of US corporate bond paper in the pipeline for September and October, with a planned $1.5bn three tranche issue. The deal, led by Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, is expected to be split into three, five and 10 year paper.

Rating: AAA (Fitch IBCA) Amount: Eu125m (fungible with two issues totalling Eu766.938m launched 25/09/96 and 03/12/96) Öffentlicher Pfandbrief series 79

Argentina Lead arranger Citibank NA has completed a $62.5m 364 day bridge loan for private electricity utility, Empresa Distribuidora Norte SA (Edenor).