Foreign exchange has arguably held up better than any other financial market in the fallout from the sub-prime crisis. Will its robustness result in it being taken more seriously as both a business and as an asset class? And which banks have fared best in Euromoney’s benchmark industry poll?

The rise of alternative beta strategies seems inevitable as investors chase greater levels of diversification in their portfolios. What are the secrets of alternative beta’s success and what obstacles can still impede its progress?

Sepa came into being in January but there is still much work to be done before the full benefits come through for banks and corporate customers. What are the main threats or opportunities of the developments? What obstacles have to be overcome? Euromoney’s debate panel wrestles with the key issues.

A plentiful supply of cheap, high-quality farmland means Russia may become key in the drive to solve global food shortages.

Non-performing loans in Mexico are growing at a worrying pace. Despite official estimates putting consumer NPLs at 5.8% of the total consumer loan market, some analysts believe that real levels are in double digits already.

The volume of equity raised by issuers from eastern Europe so far this year amounts to just $2 billion, down from $11.1 billion over the same time in 2007. Eastern Europe ECM volume accounts for just 6% of the total EMEA ECM volume raised in 2008, compared with 14% this time last year.

Mongolia’s most profitable bank is considering accessing the capital markets later this year, according to its chief executive, Peter Morrow.

Not content with its £10 billion-a-year PFI programmes, the UK government plans to extend its use of securitization to its student loan book. This is worth about £18.1 billion and is expected to increase in value to £55 billion over the next 10 years. Legislation is now in the House of Lords to enable the government to sell these loans to the capital markets – a process that it hopes will raise £6 billion by 2010.

Senator talks of progress on the SWF plan, the problems he has faced promoting the idea and why he thinks it will succeed this time.

Bad infrastructure, a weak economy and vulnerable financial assets – but bankers in South Africa remain confident.

UK PFI deal taps loan market for entire £2.2 billion.

The Argentine central bank will shortly start operating as a counterparty in the local swap market traded at the country’s main fixed-income exchange, the Mercado Abierto Electrónico.

More on sovereign wealth funds

A $259 million loan to support an acquisition financing for an offshore drilling vessel in Brazil completed syndication last month. The transaction, which was underwritten by GE Transportation Finance, GE Energy Financial Services and WestLB, was oversubscribed. The syndication, launched in February, has been deemed a great success. Mike Mullen Energy Equipment Resource, a Dallas offshore investor, has bought the vessel from Petrobras.

The volume of equity raised in the Middle East so far this year is up 62% on the same period in 2007. Issuers from the region have raised $11 billion-worth of equity year to date, mainly through IPOs, which account for 60% of total volume, up from just 47% in 2007.

Mexico is expected to take the first crucial steps towards improving its oil sector and liberalizing aspects of state-owned Pemex’s management. An energy reform proposal was sent to the Mexican congress on April 9 by president Felipe Calderón, and will be voted on shortly. Analysts are confident that the bill will be passed and, despite one opposition party, PRD, claiming this is "back door privatization", key players of the other opposition party, the PRI, support the reform.

The African Development Bank issued its third bond on the Bond Exchange of South Africa last month. The rand-denominated bond, the ADB03S, together with the ADB01S and ADB02S, which were issued in December 2007, total $408 million. Standard Bank managed and placed the issue. AfDB’s shareholders include 53 African countries and 24 countries from the Americas, Asia, and Europe.

The Eurasian Development Bank, which was founded in 2006 to finance infrastructure projects in Russia and Kazakhstan, is to expand its remit to include investments in financial institutions, according to its chairman.

So much for Kenya’s Kibaki/Odinga rivalry derailing the Africa boom.

In the first few weeks of April, the Tadawul, the Middle East’s most liquid equity exchange, had returned to form and bucked the downward trend of developed global markets. But until then, 2008 seemed to be the year of recoupling with western markets, rather than decoupling, as far as the Saudi stock market was concerned.

Amid fears that it is already overly indebted, the image-conscious Dubai government has embarked on its largest bond programme ever. The local-currency bonds will be used to fund improvements to Dubai’s choked transport infrastructure, in particular through a new metro and international mega-airport.

As part of Man Investments’ plan to expand its range, the firm has joined its European credit manager, Pemba Credit Advisors, with Ore Hill, a US credit specialist. Man has taken a 50% stake in Ore Hill, and Ore Hill has taken a 50% stake in Pemba.

In a further sign that the world’s leading companies view Russia as a core market, US drinks company PepsiCo is paying $1.4 billion to acquire 75% of Lebedyansky, Russia’s leading juice producer. Lebedyansky, which controls 30% of the country’s juice market, reported sales of $800 million last year. "This agreement provides us with a strong platform for continued expansion in one of the world’s fastest-growing juice markets," says Michael White, PepsiCo’s international chief executive. Once the initial purchase is completed a mandatory offer to buy the balance of the outstanding shares, which are listed in Moscow, is set to be launched later this year. Lebedyansky, which controls 30% of the Russian juice market, reported sales of $800 million in 2007.

The net new inflow into hedge funds collectively was a meagre $16.5 billion over the first quarter of 2008, according to Hedge Fund Research, in comparison with almost $200 billion in 2007. Some strategies fared better than others: macro hedge strategies posted $1 billion in redemptions; merger arbitrage strategies had outflows of $4 billion; while distressed strategies attracted $8 billion. Macro strategies, however, posted returns of 4.7% in Q1, while the overall hedge fund index was down more than 3%.

Leading Russian corporates Gazprom and Evraz both attracted strong support for Eurobond issues in April. Gas company Gazprom sold a $1.5 billion five- and 10-year deal via Citi and Morgan Stanley; steel producer Evraz sold $1.6 billion of five- and 10-year paper via ABN Amro, Calyon, Deutsche Bank, and UBS. Both issues were heavily oversubscribed and performed well in aftermarket trading. VTB, the country’s second-biggest bank, is set to follow with a $1 billion issue, the first in a series of transactions that will involve it seeking $4 billion of foreign funding this year.

In the run-up to the annual general meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in Kiev there were encouraging indications that dire predictions about the economic demise of the countries of central and eastern Europe are looking increasingly wide of the mark.

Osman Semerci, Merrill Lynch’s former global head of fixed income, currencies and commodities, and co-president of the EMEA global markets and investment banking business, has joined $1.7 billion alternatives group Duet as its chief executive. Duet Group, which started in 2002 with just $10 million in a single fund, now has 14 funds, and is looking to further expand its range of strategies, in addition to growing its private equity business.

Conifer Securities, which provides back- and middle-office solutions to hedge funds, family offices and endowments, has bought Morgan Stanley’s outsourced trading business. The platform provides independent trade execution in equities, options and ETFs to Morgan Stanley’s prime brokerage hedge fund clients. Conifer has also recently hired UBS’s former head of prime brokerage for the Americas, Dick Del Bello, as a senior partner.

Credit Suisse has appointed Chris Tuffey as the new head of European debt syndicate. Tuffey replaces John Fleming, who, after nine years in the job, and 14 at the bank, has left the business. Tuffey has worked at Credit Suisse for 21 years, spending much of the past 10 associated with emerging markets and investment-grade corporate syndication. In addition to syndication, he ran emerging markets origination for the past two years.

According to market participants, cash holdings are at an all-time high among investment managers.