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* NatWest Markets may sprint past the competition to bring the first Korean securitisation -- without the aid of a monoline wrap. The bank is preparing a deal for Asiana Airlines, and aims to launch it before year end if the market is favourable. The transaction will offer around $200m of fixed rate bonds in several tranches, backed by an enhanced equipment trust certificate. Proceeds from the deal will be used to buy three new aircraft, which the issuing vehicle will lease to the airline.

ASIA LTD, the Singapore based monoline insurer part owned by CapMAC, launched the second major public bond this week from its 'black box' vehicle Securitization and Infrastructure Funding Corp. Sifco placed $45m and ¥2bn of floaters due July 2002 through Nomura Singapore. The notes are guaranteed by Asia Ltd, which is rated A by Standard & Poor's, AA by Duff & Phelps and AA+ by NIS.

BANKERS IN ASIA dismissed as pre-Christmas madness speculation that the Indonesian government is preparing to raise up to $1.5bn in the international debt markets before the end of the year. Salomon Brothers has been rumoured to hold a mandate, but officials at the firm denied all knowledge of it.

BANK OF East Asia reopened the Hong Kong securitisation market with a $260m residential mortgage backed deal brought by UBS. The transaction is the first asset backed issue from the special administrative region since Dah Sing Bank's $300m mortgage securitisation at the end of June.

THE UK's largest diversified industrial conglomerate, BTR, has announced plans to sell down one-third of its businesses by 1998. The sales could include two of its manufacturing companies in Australia, which may raise over A$4bn in IPOs. Goldman Sachs is financial adviser on the sale of BTR's glass and packaging arm, while Schroders has a similar role for its building materials unit. Both firms are planning IPOs for the first half of next year, but are also trying to find buyers for the businesses.

CITIBANK launched its first CLO in the Australian domestic market this week, lead managed by Citisecurities. The A$580m deal from Initial Corporate Obligation Notes Trust (Icon) is also the first securitisation of commercial loans in Australia.

FOLLOWING THE listing last week of the first bond issue on the Botswana Stock Exchange, news emerged this week of the first bond issue which will be traded on the Uganda Securities Exchange (USE). The East African Development Bank, majority owned by the governments of Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania and headquartered in the Ugandan capital Kampala, has become the first entity to issue medium term Ugandan shilling risk with the launch of a Ush10bn ($10m) four year issue via arrangers Cedef Assets of the UK and Uganda's Nile Bank

BANCO Santander Brazil has issued the largest ever emerging market Navigator bond, illustrating the growing demand for Brazilian credits in the Portuguese market. The Esc34bn transaction, led by Banco Santander de Negocios Portugal, has a three year tenor and pays a coupon of six month Lisbor plus 165bp divided by 0.85. The unusual coupon takes into account the 15% withholding tax levied by Brazil on transactions issued directly by Brazilian entities. Only issues for the republic are exempt from this tax.

ESTONIA this week secured its third investment grade rating when Standard & Poor's assigned the country a BBB+ foreign currency rating and an A- local currency rating. S&P's announcement ranks Estonia above its two Baltic peers, Latvia and Lithuania, which the US rating agency rates BBB and BBB- respectively.

POLITICAL AND economic developments in Russia continued to enthral the international capital markets this week with a mix of positive and negative signals emanating from the country. The Russian government decided on Tuesday to postpone negotiations with Chase Manhattan, Credit Suisse First Boston, Deutsche Morgan Grenfell and Salomon Smith Barney on a $2bn short term financing package until early next year. This has seemed to signal increased confidence in the economy's ability to survive a liquidity squeeze which has resulted from the turbulence in emerging markets.

MORGAN STANLEY Dean Witter this week completed the first successful jumbo bought deal since the world's stockmarkets began to destabilise two months ago, with a $630m offering of ING shares. Bouts of volatility triggered by October's Asian meltdown had previously caught out a number of bought deals, such as that of JP Morgan's block in Usinor Sacilor. Bankers believe that lead managers of some such blocks are still sitting on their deals.

LEAD managers Nordbanken, Credit Suisse First Boston and Merrill Lynch this week completed the last major transaction of the year from the Nordic region with the completion of the sale of stock in Nordbanken. The deal, which raised in excess of $800m, was executed toward the middle of this week with a book which was more than three time oversubscribed. Investors in the region and throughout continental Europe clamoured for stock in a move to obtain exposure to the rapidly consolidating European banking industry.