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In the June 2001 edition of Euromoney the Bank Atlas table of the world's biggest 250 banks incorrectly indicated that fifth ranked Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) was a subsidiary of the holding company of the Mizuho Financial group. We are happy to point out that SMBC is in no way affiliated to the Mizuho Financial Group.

No respite seems in sight for India's equity markets. Reeling from a share price rigging scam in March and brokers' protests against new trading rules, the markets were felled once again last month by news of trouble at India's largest manager of mutual fund assets, the Unit Trust of India (UTI).

Around this time of year bankers are struck by a strange affliction. Maybe they're bored - summer markets are notoriously quiet - or perhaps they reckon most people will be on vacation and won't notice. Whatever the reason, there's a marked increase in silly deals. Two recent issues have left observers scratching their heads.

Despite having the backing of six of Europe’s leading investment banks, BondClick has bitten the dust. Though its mission to create an electronic platform for trading European government bonds seemed straightforward enough, just three months after it launched its trading operation it was already in big trouble. The whole episode is an embarrassment for the banks that backed the new venture.

"The people of France have regarded it as a badge of honour since time immemorial to find imaginative ways to avoid paying taxes," says a banking analyst from BNP Paribas.

With its growing presence in investor portfolios, credit’s importance as an asset class increases daily. Euromoney gathered bankers and fund managers together to discuss the problems that popularity brings.

Chief economist of Raiffeisenbank, Prague

Vice-chairman, Jefferies & Company

As the going gets tough for Europe’s online brokers, a new leader has emerged from Italy. Fineco’s success in attracting new business suggests that players in the European asset-gathering market must be wary of wedding themselves too strictly to a single business model. Fineco combines online broking with direct banking, branches and a network of financial planners. So far, it’s working well, but it takes two co-chief executives to run it.

David Komansky doesn’t step down as Merrill Lynch’s CEO until 2004 but he has recognized that his most important remaining task is to engineer a smooth succession. With the sector seemingly moving into a deep downturn this is all the more important. Antony Currie reports on the emergence of Stan O’Neal as Komansky’s anointed successor

The arrival of John Mack as CEO of CSFB was preceded by an execution that would have done "the Knife" himself proud. Credit Suisse Group chief executive Lukas Mühlemann hired Mack before he despatched Allen Wheat and after telling his old CEO his job was safe. But with CSFB mired in regulatory problems, struggling to digest ill-advised acquisitions and riven with in-fighting generated by Wheat's distinctive approach to growing the business, he had little choice. Mack has a formidable reputation, but can he dismantle CSFB's byzantine cliques and create a single culture?

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