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GC Asia
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Should London care if listings dwindle?
The London listing review, out this week, has been hailed as a vital chance for the City to straighten its slipping crown as Europe’s top financial centre.
04 Mar 2021 -
Muted reaction to Russian sanctions, US withholds local debt option
The US this week confirmed it would follow the EU and sanction certain Russian individuals in connection with the poisoning of prominent opposition leader and Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny. The announcements did not move markets, and are a far cry from the worst-case scenario some had feared.
04 Mar 2021 -
Pemex to dump Fitch but agency will keep rating it
Fitch Ratings said on Wednesday that it would continue to provide international ratings and research on Mexican government-owned oil giant Pemex even after the issuer said it was dispensing with the agency’s services. Previously, Mexican president Andrés Manual López Obrador had publicly criticised Fitch’s negative rating actions on Pemex, which accounts for nearly 10% of investor holdings of EM corporate bonds.
04 Mar 2021 -
Equity market cheers London listing review
Equity capital market participants cheered the publication on Wednesday of former EU commissioner Jonathan Hill's review of London listing rules. The report, written on behalf of the UK Treasury, recommended sweeping changes in order to attract more companies to the London Stock Exchange. On Thursday, Deliveroo, the food delivery company, announced it would be listing in London.
03 Mar 2021 -
Petbra bonds recover but CEO sacking raises Brazil doubts
Spreads on Petrobras’s bonds recovered most of their lost ground this week after a sharp sell-off followed Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro sacking the company’s chief executive on Monday. But while strong quarterly results released on Wednesday were a reminder of the state-owned oil and gas giant’s fundamental strength, Bolsonaro’s actions have led to questions around policy decisions in an economy with major fiscal issues.
25 Feb 2021 -
DBJ snags dollar three year with sharp tightening
Development Bank of Japan became the second SSA borrower of the week to sell a dollar benchmark in the supplied three year tenor, tightening pricing by 5bp on the sustainability bond.
25 Feb 2021 -
UniCredit to choose new ECM head after Hecker allegation
UniCredit’s global head of equity capital markets and equity syndicate has left the bank after allegations of having done inappropriate side work for Markus Braun, former CEO of the collapsed Germany payments company Wirecard.
24 Feb 2021 -
Limited EU sanctions on Russia to have little impact but NS2 concerns linger
New sanctions from the EU on Russian figures following the imprisonment of opposition leader Alexei Navalny are set to have little impact on Russia, according to market experts. However, companies withdrawing from the Nord Stream 2 project indicate a growing uneasiness around conducting business with Russian entities.
23 Feb 2021 -
Petrobras CEO saga sends bonds tumbling as fiscal fears mount
Petrobras bonds slumped on Monday after Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro nominated retired general and former defence minister Joaquim Silva de Luna to be the state-owned oil and gas giant’s new CEO. One analyst decried “corporate statism” as others saw the decision as a warning about the direction of Brazil’s fiscal policy.
23 Feb 2021 -
UniCredit baffled by Wirecard 'moonlighting' allegation
A report that Jana Hecker, global head of equity syndicate and equity capital markets at UniCredit, had worked privately for Markus Braun, the imprisoned former CEO of Wirecard, stunned UniCredit employees on Friday afternoon when it appeared in the Financial Times.
19 Feb 2021 -
Hong Kong bookbuilding crackdown: a step too far
The Hong Kong regulator’s plan to overhaul the bookbuilding and allocation process for equity and bond deals has some worthy goals. But it is unnecessary for a market that has proven able to clean its own house.
17 Feb 2021 -
Ratings agencies cautious on Next Gen EU impact
European investors have wholeheartedly embraced the EU’s Next Generation EU programme and piled into risky assets in anticipation of a swifter recovery. But rating agencies are less convinced, warning that only the substance and implementation of national recovery plans will determine the trajectory of European growth.
16 Feb 2021 -
HK SFC plans overhaul of ECM, DCM syndicates
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is planning to bring in sweeping changes to rules governing equity and bond deals, requiring syndicate teams to be fixed earlier and fee structures to be disclosed. The moves have divided bankers. Jonathan Breen and Morgan Davis report.
11 Feb 2021 -
Shenzhen stock move step in right direction for China
Chinese regulators have made a long overdue move to reduce the number of boards at the Shenzhen stock exchange. That points to a greater commitment towards streamlining the country’s sometimes confounding capital markets.
09 Feb 2021 -
HK regulator proposes new rules for share and bond issues
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is planning to introduce new rules that will require syndicate teams on bond and equity deals to be fixed earlier and brokers to disclose their fee structures, moves that are aimed at improving transparency in the city's capital markets and hold banks more accountable for their transactions.
09 Feb 2021 -
The week in review: Shenzhen merges mainboard with SME board, CSRC strengthens ESG disclosures, MOU sealed for Wealth Management Connect
In this round-up, China’s securities regulator approves the consolidation of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange’s main board and the SME board, listed companies are required to update investors with information related to their environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) efforts, and Beijing, Hong Kong and Macau further lay the foundation for a cross-border wealth management connect pilot scheme.
08 Feb 2021 -
‘Fortress Russia’ to withstand sanctions but cracks appear
The spectre of imminent US-led sanctions against Russia has reappeared following the controversial imprisonment of opposition leader Alexey Navalny. While some say “Fortress Russia” will survive with or without sanctions, others believe the country’s already isolated capital markets and its access to funding could come under intense strain, writes Mariam Meskin.
04 Feb 2021 -
Should CFOs hope for a GameStop lottery ticket?
The extraordinary price action in GameStop, AMC Entertainment and others' shares last week is surely leading nervous CFOs all over the world to get an at-the-money rights issue signed off, in case they win the attention of Reddit's WallStreetBets crowd and can raise equity at giddy multiples. But this is like hoping for a winning lottery ticket. For firms in the most Covid-addled sectors, a private approach will be their best shot at financing a turnaround.
02 Feb 2021 -
Head of market standards body steps down
Martin Pluves is leaving his role as chief executive of the Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities Market Standards Board (FMSB).
01 Feb 2021 -
Russia sanction risk increases, though concerns muted
Mass arrests following protests in Russia over the last two weeks in defence of opposition leader Alexei Navalny have increased the likelihood of US sanctions on some of the country’s leading figures. However, market experts say that new sanctions would be unlikely to cripple the country’s markets, as they have done in the past.
01 Feb 2021 -
Is r/wallstreetbets a populist revolution?
This week in Keeping Tabs: optimum bank capital ratios, and also that other story everyone's been talking about.
29 Jan 2021 -
China policy and markets round-up: Xi warns against ‘new cold war’, CSRC, CBIRC set 2021 goals, Allianz gets nod for fully owned insurance AMC
In this round-up, Chinese president Xi Jinping warns of international confrontations from a ‘new cold war’, regulators plan deeper capital market reforms and increased oversight of internet finance platforms, and European insurance giant Allianz receives approval for China’s first fully foreign-owned insurance asset management company.
29 Jan 2021 -
Long attacks are here to stay
Andrea Orcel, the new CEO of UniCredit, may be annoyed to be upstaged by Avalon Penrose, an actor whose hilarious and heart-tugging Twitter video about the GameStop share maelstrom has captured the insanity of stock markets. But these are the frothy markets we live in now.
28 Jan 2021 -
Brexit: EU could look to 'squeeze harder and tighter'
Banks and other financial services firms continue to adapt to Brexit, with more than 400 firms estimated to have moved some part of their business to the EU.
28 Jan 2021 -
New CFPB leader may have ‘deleterious’ impact on ABS market
Rohit Chopra has been named the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, putting an end to three years of deregulation and kicking off an era of aggressive consumer protection. The ABS market is keeping a close eye on Chopra’s key plans, which include restoring the bureau’s ability to start its own investigations and establishing a new credit reporting agency.
25 Jan 2021 -
US banks face impossible questions on China
The relationship between the US and China, which has faced immense strain during Donald Trump’s presidency, is unlikely to get too much relief under the Biden administration. The biggest losers will be US banks and their capital markets business in Asia.
20 Jan 2021 -
Institutional investors look set to suffocate bitcoin’s radical past
The emergence of institutional money into bitcoin is the death knell for its revolutionary dreams of a decentralised economic system.
12 Jan 2021 -
Chinese IPOs in US still on despite NYSE flip-flops
The New York Stock Exchange’s flip-flop on whether to delist three Chinese telecommunications giants caused plenty of confusion in the market this week, but mainland companies are still keen to sell shares in the US. Jonathan Breen reports.
07 Jan 2021 -
China moves ahead with delisting reform
The stock exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen have introduced new regulations to forcibly delist companies, fast-tracking the process and giving more clarity about the various scenarios that can push firms to exit the bourses. There are loopholes, however, and the true impact of the regime on China’s equities market will probably be limited, writes Addison Gong.
07 Jan 2021 -
NYSE reverses China telcos delisting plan
The New York Stock Exchange has dropped plans to delist the stocks of China Mobile, China Telecom Corp and China Unicom (Hong Kong).
05 Jan 2021 -
The week in review: China, EU reach investment deal, NYSE to delist Chinese telecom trio, regulators curb real estate loans
In this round-up, China and the European Union wrap up negotiations on a bilateral investment agreement, the bourse in New York moves to delist three Chinese telecommunication giants, and the Mainland regulators have increased oversight on loans in the real estate sector.
04 Jan 2021 -
UK should embrace LSE evolution with listing review
The UK government is in the midst of a review that is seeking to make London a more attractive listing venue for high growth international technology companies. While change is undoubtedly concerning for some who do not want the UK to lose its reputation for high standards, the UK should not ignore a chance for the London Stock Exchange to evolve.
15 Dec 2020 -
Bonus questions loom following calls for caution
Investment bankers have piled up heaps of revenue for their firms this year, but their employers may feel the need not to be too generous with bonuses in the first few months of next year.
09 Dec 2020 -
Boss swap: FCA's Hoggett to lead London Stock Exchange
Julia Hoggett is moving from the UK's Financial Conduct Authority to become chief executive of London Stock Exchange, a subsidiary of the wider London Stock Exchange Group forming part of its capital markets business. It operates debt and equity securities. Her predecessor at the stock exchange, Nikhil Rathi, moved the other way to become head of the FCA earlier this year.
07 Dec 2020 -
Investor group slams Ancestry voting cap term
The European Leveraged Finance Association, a trade body of investors, has slammed terms in the $1bn buyout bond for Ancestry.com which cap investor voting rights, hoping to stop the new feature in its tracks and prevent sponsors including it in European transactions.
03 Dec 2020 -
EU contemplates ‘nuclear option’ for recovery fund
The European Commission is considering a way to proceed with its €750bn coronavirus recovery fund that will exclude Hungary and Poland. The two countries have stood firm in their opposition over the idea that receipt of EU funds will depend on states adhering to the rule of law.
03 Dec 2020 -
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‘The auditors have been asleep at the wheel,’ says forensic accountant Steve Clapham
Veteran equity analyst and forensic accountant Steve Clapham believes it is stories that drive investment decisions and seldom cold analysis of financial accounts. But he believes it is hard to find a company which isn’t engaged in some level of financial wrongdoing and argues that auditors are blind to it, wilfully or otherwise.
30 Nov 2020 -
Guatemala pays US court award to dodge default
Guatemala has settled a long-running legal dispute with Florida-based Teco Energy, allowing it to pay bondholders and avoid defaulting on an international bond.
26 Nov 2020 -
Alibaba CEO learns lesson in humility
Alibaba’s chief executive Daniel Zhang has praised a regulatory crackdown on China’s technology titans. That was an abrupt turn from co-founder Jack Ma’s loose-lips policy to discussing China. Investors will be relieved.
24 Nov 2020 -
Indian regulator plans cut to minimum float for chunky IPOs
India’s securities regulator has proposed slashing the minimum required share offering of large IPOs, helping the country’s biggest companies comply with listing rules.
23 Nov 2020 -
China default fears rise after SOEs allowed to miss payments
China’s onshore bond market has been hit with a number of high-profile defaults from state-owned issuers, undermining primary supply and leading to a spike in secondary yields. Addison Gong reports.
19 Nov 2020 -
Croydon’s insolvency could be just the beginning
Giving cheap loans with few restrictions to local authorities via the Public Works Loan Board is not a suitable replacement for central government funding. This must change, or London Borough of Croydon will only be the first council to fall into insolvency.
17 Nov 2020 -
Russians need to move quick to get ahead of sanctions
With the inauguration of US president-elect Joe Biden in January will come increased expectations of further sanctions against Russian figures and corporates. Russian issuers should take advantage of the rally initiated by Biden's election performance and follow their sovereign into bond markets to raise cash while the going is good.
17 Nov 2020 -
Poland and Hungary block EU recovery fund over rule of law
The EU recovery fund has hit a major obstacle in its journey to capital markets. Hungary and Poland have vetoed the "own resources decision", which would allow the EU to access the bond market on its own account.
17 Nov 2020 -
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Banker who took UBS to court is hired by litigation funder
Ben Smyth, the whistleblower and former debt capital markets banker who took UBS to court, has been hired as an investment officer by the litigation funder Therium Capital.
17 Nov 2020 -
Old Lady could lean in for post-Brexit regulatory KISS
KISS: the new acronym touted by Sam Woods, chief executive of the Prudential Regulation Authority, in a speech given at Mansion House on Thursday, proposes that regulatory requirements should “keep it strong and simple” after Brexit.
13 Nov 2020 -
Investors on election watch as Peru sells off after impeachment
Though the bond market reaction to the impeachment of Peru’s popular president was not as severe as it would have been in most Latin American countries, investors said that political volatility would continue to challenge the sovereign’s credit profile and that the situation presented risks for next year’s elections.
11 Nov 2020 -
Unibail rights issue cancelled as activists victorious
Shopping centre group Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield's planned €3.5bn rights issue has been cancelled after a group of activist shareholders convinced investors to reject it ahead of an extraordinary general meeting.
10 Nov 2020 -
Ant’s listing failure should worry HKEX
Ant Group’s IPO suspension was a big blow to many: the fintech firm itself, the banks that worked on the huge transaction, and the investors that were salivating to get a piece of the stock. It was also a big setback for the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's reputation as an independent and attractive listing destination.
10 Nov 2020 -
Meet the (probable) next US president
Many have heard of Frost/Nixon, a great play — and later a film — based on the real interviews David Frost did with US president Richard Nixon after his impeachment and resignation. But here's a 1987 BBC interview by David Frost with Joe Biden, before his first tilt at the presidency.
06 Nov 2020
