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A year on from the Basque separatists' ceasefire and the region is booming, led by Bizkaia, largest of the three Basque provinces. Its capital city, Bilbao, is upgrading its infrastructure to cope with the huge numbers of visitors to the new Guggenheim Museum. It's attracting international banks and technology companies, partly thanks to favourable tax rates. But Madrid is contesting these. Meanwhile ETA extremists remain a threat. Jules Stewart reports.

If you ever forget - or never knew - what being a banking lawyer is all about, there's a book that will make it all horribly clear, says Christopher Stoakes

People: Mark Collier, Chairman and CEO, Investia

For five decades, a small Milan bank has wielded power over Italian finance and industry. It has anointed and toppled bosses, fostered and blocked mergers, and defeated every attack on its influence. Its secretive machinations have infuriated supporters of transparent markets. In recent years, Mediobanca was presumed in decline as the world around it modernized. But in 1999 the firm struck back, steering the consolidation of Italian finance in its favour with help from its patriarch, Enrico Cuccia. Yet even in its year of triumph, Mediobanca faces a worsening internal split: between an old guard obsessed with power and intrigue, and a young investment-banking team who want to be less Cesare Borgia, more Goldman Sachs. Marcus Walker reports

Two crucial meetings this month may settle the uncertain future of Bavarian giant HypoVereinsbank, in turmoil since chairman Albrecht Schmidt and merger partner Eberhard Martini had a very public row. Auditors, former board members and the Munich state prosecutor are embroiled in a high-octane war. It was born in the euphoria of German unification, brewed in the property slump of the late 1990s, and exploded into a battle of numbers that no-one can win. David Shirreff reports.

Rumours about an impending sale of Warburg Dillon Read have been circulating for over a year, ever since more derivatives losses were announced following the merger with UBS. This year they have resurfaced, despite a healthy performance so far (WDR accounted for 30% of UBS's pre-tax profits for the first nine months of the year, bringing in $1.34 billion). Chase Manhattan, which lacks an equity operation, and Salomon Smith Barney, which lacks a significant European equities operation, have both been touted as buyers.

Greece has come a long way in a short time. The economy looks good and business is booming. But is there a danger of declaring victory while the battle is still raging? Greeks are starting to argue that Greece is different and that excessive stock market valuations are justified. Many other countries have done the same in the past and lived to regret it. Brian Caplen reports.

Why US firms fear FASB's rule 133

Japan's new leviathans

Stop-go state sell-off

Stop-go state sell-off

It has been a banner year for new issues of convertible bonds, with many forces working together, especially in Europe, to support the primary market. Low interest rates and hopes for equity market growth have prompted more and more investors to buy convertibles and the pressure on companies to enhance shareholder returns and to unwind cross-holdings has prompted the issuers. High stock market volatility, following last year's financial meltdown, has also helped the market. This is the full text version of a roundtable discussion, exclusive to Euromoney On-Line.