With falling returns for hedge funds, it looks as if a trend might be developing for their employees to return to less risky, better remunerated roles in investment banks.

European issuers tapping the US capital market are increasingly using the extendible note market. They are driven by a need for liquid markets and relatively low appetite for the regulatory complications involved with 144a SEC registration

As recently as May this year, following the two 25 basis point increases of December 2005 and March 2006 that raised the European Central Bank’s main refinancing rate to 2.5%, ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet was speaking of the “still very low levels of nominal and real interest rates across the whole maturity spectrum”.

“We’ve got samurais, kangaroos and bulldogs – now what we really need is a name for all these bonds coming out of Kazakhstan...”

The increased use of ever more powerful computers in the financial markets is having an unexpected effect on Canary Wharf, London’s supposedly modern, high-tech business location.

“Another pandemic or a large event risk such as a full-scale ground war, or various nuclear bombs exploding in large cities in any of the three countries would cause a loss for the noteholders”

Fitch Ratings has launched a wholly owned subsidiary devoted to the credit derivatives sector.

Private equity has emerged a clear winner from stock market volatility in the Middle East – a large number of funds were set up as a result. But is there a risk of a bubble developing in this market too? Kathryn Wells finds out.

Asia’s property market is growing fast as it moves onto global investors’ horizons. Reits are in the vanguard of that development and are evolving rapidly. Those changes might yet pose challenges for investors. Chris Leahy reports.

Abu Dhabi Energy Company (Taqa) has sold a $3.5 billion equivalent debut bond, containing a €750 million seven-year tranche, a $1 billion 10-year tranche and a $1.5 billion 30-year portion, making it the largest ever straight bond from the Middle East.

Banks jostle for league table positions as volumes show no sign of letting up.

MDM deal heralds new swap technology.

The City of Moscow’s Sergei Pakhomov hopes that full rouble convertibility will offer a way around restrictive legislation that governs municipal issuance in Russia.

At a meeting on global real estate last month, the speakers concluded that Latin America was the next investment opportunity, with Mexico at the forefront. Speakers also named Chile, Brazil, Venezuela and Argentina as countries to watch. Real estate in Mexico, which has traditionally been driven by Americans, is now starting to see local and other foreign investment.

Bolivia signed a deal last month worth $17 billion that is set to triple its sale of natural gas to Argentina. Under a new contract, Bolivia will increase exports to Argentina from the current maximum of 7.7 million cubic metres a day to 27.7 million cubic metres a day over a 20-year period beginning in 2010.

As governments across the continent are engaging in economic reforms and building their country’s infrastructure, new types of investors are starting to see Africa as a safe bet when searching for higher returns.

SOME 50,000 small- and medium-size companies in Chile will benefit from a proposed new law that will make it much easier for companies to switch bank lender, according to banking experts.

Chávez says that he might try to seize four companies operating in Venezuela owned in part by Exxon, ConocoPhillips, Chevron, Total and Statoil.

Investment banks in Japan are preparing to compete for a share of the lucrative market for corporate hybrid capital issuance that they hope will develop following retailer Aeon’s pioneering 50-year security.

As the unremittingly positive attitude of investors and analysts towards Vietnam just seems to get even more positive, capital raising for new fund launches is rising fast.

There is anecdotal evidence that hedge funds have been increasingly important players in emerging markets for some time now. But a new report from Greenwich Associates has quantified the trend to a startling extent.

Latin America’s bankers take note. If Gaetan Bucher has his way, within four years they will be living and working in the Dominican Republic (DR).

Regulators hope to repeat their success in reforming practices in the credit derivatives market.

Strange market conditions prevail as companies face investors that are spoilt for choice and hedge funds that are increasingly cautious.

NYSE will keep the floor alive having introduced electronic trading; critics say floor traders will soon be swamped.

In two new reports, TowerGroup makes the easy prediction that daily volumes in FX will soon surpass $3 trillion. But making sense of whether the market will consolidate has proved harder to predict for the consultancy firm.

But are the banks really supporting the programme?

The central banks of Argentina and Brazil are putting together a proposal that will ease trade payments between importers and exporters in the two countries.

After the defection of three of its key FX staff to Merrill Lynch, Dresdner Kleinwort has acted quickly to try to instil some stability into the business unit.

91% the increase in real estate/property sector IPOs year to date over the same period last year. Global IPOs in the sector have raised $21 billion so far, already the highest ever yearly volume, according to Dealogic.