Hong Kong's premier sporting event, the Rugby Sevens, solved its sponsorship quandary last month. Credit Suisse First Boston has taken over the role from the now bankrupt Peregrine.
It is a relief for rugby fans in Hong Kong who feared the worst when Peregrine went bust in January. It is also a sign of CSFB's renewed commitment to the territory, where it now has 360 staff and has recently bought a sizeable chunk of BZW Asia.
The Sevens in typical Hong Kong style - changed hands by way of a phone call late on the afternoon of January 9. Alan Smith, the former boss of Jardine Fleming and since last year the vice-chairman of CSFB Asia, rang Peregrine chief Philip Tose to ask how things were going. An old friend and long-time sparring partner, Tose told Smith that things were bad and that Peregrine's Swiss saviour, Zurich Centre Investments, had decided not to inject fresh equity capital.
This signalled the end for Peregrine, and Smith offered his commiserations. After putting down the phone, Smith thought about the difficulty this would pose for the Sevens. The event is a Hong Kong institution, and Smith knew that the last thing Tose would want was for the event to be put in jeopardy.