Industry lobbying pays off – for now; Other regulators might take up the baton

Often using new technology, banks are serving emerging market consumers in innovative ways.

China’s $600 billion 2008 pump-priming of the economy was centrally orchestrated. A 2012 version, driven by local Communist Party mandarins, risks throwing even more vast sums into vacuous and wasteful projects. The central powers don’t seem to share their zeal.

Romney and Obama support losing banks; US falling behind Europe in the ‘non-bank bank’ sector

Expectations are growing that Barclays’ new chief executive will dismantle the group’s investment bank, but that might be exactly the wrong thing to do.

Currency measures improve Brazil’s ability to pursue an independent monetary policy but are less successful in terms of asset prices.

Bank targets benefits from greater scale; Merges corporate and investment banks

Record $120 billion issued in August; But bankers warn against complacency

Operational risk more expensive than credit risk; Rearguard action hobbling future growth

Creating a system that relies less on rating agencies is complex but possible.

Investors baulk at part of rights issue; Collardi talks up transformational deal

The country has the potential to cement its position as the world’s leading centre for Islamic finance, but a lack of standardization is causing problems, particularly for international expansion.

Against a background of heavy Japanese foreign-currency bond issuance, Euromoney speaks to a panel of leading borrowers and arrangers about the impact of the eurozone crisis, the country’s borrowing needs and the prospects for its economy.

The eurozone crisis has prompted increasing concerns about risk among clients seeking liquidity management. But Euromoney’s debate suggests that bankers feel they have the mechanisms in place to meet customer needs for reassurance and safety.

An investor-protection act between Taiwan and mainland China is fuelling speculation of blockbuster investments. Such deals are vital – even if only in a symbolic sense to begin with.

Myanmar is undergoing political liberalization and opening up to the wider world. But the process is full of ironies and aberrations. What this new era will mean for the country’s economy and financial sector is far from clear.

How long can tapping into short-lived, ECB-driven euphoria be the only trading strategy in town?