Power, mining and energy companies dominate Euromoney’s annual survey of the best companies in CEE, but diversity is increasing as markets mature

Euromoney: "What is it about your client’s economic fundamentals that make it such a compelling story?"

Sir Fred Goodwin, ex-chief executive of RBS, who found himself the lightning rod for UK public anger over the financial crisis in 2008, seems to have again served himself up on a plate to the UK media for ridicule.

The global credit crunch and associated economic downturn hit Kazakhstan hard. But there is growing evidence that the country is back on the path to recovery. Guy Norton reports from Almaty.

Five years after Saudi banks saw their investment banking and asset management arms split from their commercial banks, the sector is still finding its feet. Three of the firms that got a head start tell Chris Wright how the battle for market share is likely to play out.

The royal wedding was British but New York knows a money-spinner when it sees one.

Qatar’s accession to the MSCI Emerging Markets index would open it up to new investment inflows and might prompt a liberalization of other equity markets in the region

Nedbank’s owners are still looking for a buyer, after the failure of a deal for HSBC to buy the South African bank last year.

The nation’s gold, coal and iron-ore reserves are making it the world’s fastest-growing investment destination. But a lack of infrastructure funding and planning threatens to derail the country’s rapid transformation. Lawrence White reports from Ulaan Baatar.

The Listing in Hong Kong Forum at the Kempinski Khan Palace hotel in Mongolia’s capital, Ulaan Baatar, on April 14 involved a range of high-profile speakers and delegates, including representatives from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, regional product heads from various global banks and dozens of local chief executives. None, however, commanded quite the attention afforded to Kyokushuzan Batbayar, a Mongolian sumo wrestler returned from Japan to become a member of parliament. Translator in tow, the cheerful Batbayar toured the room handing out his card to local businessmen and some clearly impressed foreign bankers. "What. A. Unit...what an absolute unit!" was the awestruck response of one senior such figure at the event. Apparently known as the gino depato or "department store of techniques" while in Japan for his wide range of holds and throws, many adapted from Mongolian wrestling, Batbayar was a popular figure among his countrymen during his time abroad and now looks set on a successful political career. With many Mongolians worried about foreign investors getting the upper hand when wrangling with Mongolia’s government, his will surely be a reassuring presence on any negotiating team.

Strong growth and the government’s debt swap to holdouts have opened the bond markets to the country’s private sector. But October’s presidential election is already stirring uncertainty. Rob Dwyer reports.

"What does he mean by this? I suppose it is about police coming and taking us like we see with the press. What kind of police-type measures could be imposed against a bank? This is like a joke. Isn’t this a state of law?"

For a company that likes to keep its head below the parapet, commodities trader Glencore could not have appointed a more incongruous chairman.

After decades of neglect, infrastructure in central and eastern Europe is in urgent need of upgrading. Now projects across the region are on hold in the wake of the global downturn. Lucy Fitzgeorge-Parker talks to the public- and private-sector bankers trying to get the market back on its feet.

One of the latest books to be added to the library of publications aimed at dissecting the causes of the financial crisis is "The unravelling of structured investment vehicles: how liquidity leaked through SIVs" by Dr Henry Tabe of Sequoia Investment Management.

South African leadership in African markets is over; but it holds a lesson for the continent.

Extensive retail finance acquisition; Sector still strong despite government curbs

Mixed fortunes for IPOs; Credit Suisse maintains dominance

Reasons for withdrawal not stated; Culmination of agency’s bearishness on sector

European banks benefit from euro introduction; spurs consolidation of market share.

Ernst & Young survey reveals mixed results; Good news on risk governance, liquidity and funding

Geithner supports move; Foreign issuance into dollar market increases

Unilever prices just over 1%; Renminbi IPO in HK meets caution

Current account deficit key economic weakness; Government spending promises add to woes

Continuing political instability in North Africa and the Middle East, together with oil-supply constraints, will increase energy risks and therefore prices.

Seen as hedge to currency debasement; Integrated FX and metals pricing adds advantage

First Rand in Nigeria acquisition talks; Absa, Barclays Africa in new integration push

Fewer prestige buyouts by state funds; International investors wary of political risk

Hedging hit may spread to other banks; BlackRock findings reinvigorate lawsuit

Suddenly, the clouds converged and the warm spring sunlight dimmed. This was how I felt when I read that 47-year-old Pietro Ferrero, chief executive of the Ferrero group, and heir to one of Italy’s biggest fortunes, had died of a suspected heart attack. Ferrero died while bicycling on a coastal road near Cape Town during a break from a business meeting in South Africa. US treasuries