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An administrative law judge has ordered that a former CFO be rehired, with back pay, in a decision that is considered the first related to whistle-blower protections promised by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

The mutual fund crisis in the US is affecting corporates as a recent survey by Finance Executives International (FEI) shows. Almost half of the surveyed CFOs believe funds held within their 401(k) plans are involved in the recent mutual fund scandal.

If a UK tabloid is to be believed, Coutts is about to offer Prince William (pictured, left) more than just a bank account. William ? second in line to the throne ? is considering a career with Coutts when he graduates from St Andrews University, according to the Sunday Mirror.

Private equity exits, privatizations, and spin-offs will reinvigorate the IPO market this year, helping IPOs to account for a greater share of equity capital markets business. Deals may appear to be done faster but investors remain wary. The same can't be said for bankers when it comes to block trades. Peter Koh reports.

Regulation, historical rivalries, investor scepticism, language barriers and egos all stand in the way of large bank mergers in western Europe, where consolidation stalled at the end of the 1990s. Unless these obstacles can be overcome, leading European banks will be swallowed by US financial institutions just as soon as they have finished digesting their domestic acquisitions. Katie Martin reports.

For one emerging-markets issuer at least, the US-led invasion of Iraq has proved a bonus.

The imminent accession of 10 countries to the European Union comes at an inauspicious time for the EU project, with the collapse of constitutional proposals and an undermined Stability and Growth Pact. This will alter accession countries' attitudes to their obligations, with consequences for eastern European finance. Julian Evans reports.

Reform is on the agenda for Morocco, although the king still wields comprehensive power. New openings are being sought to rebalance an economy dependent on tourism and to overcome stubbornly high unemployment. Rupert Wright reports.

Western Europe | Emerging Europe | Asia | North America

In the Islamic awards section in January we mis-printed the name of Commerce International Merchant Bankers. Apologies.

Equity capital markets bankers agree that accelerated transactions and bought deals are here to stay. Such deals dominated ECM issuance for most of 2003, with fully bought deals accounting for 54% of all block trades. This, however, obscures the fact that many accelerated block trades that are not officially bought deals have aggressive backstop arrangements that make them little different to those officially classed as risk trades. Clients in need of cash like them because the discounts are tighter, sometimes substantially so. This is despite the fact that in every quarter last year they had substantially worse after-market performance.

Large US banks with ambitions to become national franchise players now see that dream become more possible as slipping earnings bring weaker banks within acquisition range. Mergers look like the only way to grow. But along with the announcement of high-profile deals investors are making it clear that they have not forgotten the mistakes of the merger-manic 1990s. Antony Currie reports.