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If you were trying to scupper the career of an over-zealous colleague, this is the sort of financing mandate you might want to throw in their direction: first, make it a commodity deal (preferably not oil which is suddenly showing signs of revival); second, set the deal in a developing country, at a time when emerging markets are out of vogue, and local currency financing is scarce. Finally, throw in a little political difficulty, such as the arrest of a former president, which leads to fighting on the streets and the threat of trade sanctions.

The Nuovo Mercato is "a new market for small and medium-size companies [that] can help to develop a real market culture in our country." Thus Massimo Capuano, chief executive officer of Borsa Italiana - the company that runs the Italian stock exchange, introducing Italy's new equity market. The Nuovo Mercato - literally the New Market - will be the Italian equivalent of Germany's Neuer Markt and France's Nouveau Marché: a stock market especially designed to give high-growth companies access to funding.

The problem with anything Japanese is that it all depends on your point of view. Three Japanese groups fail with more than $10.4 billion worth of debts. Tokai bank has just announced that it will forgive more than $3 billion worth of debts. Shareholders - other banks - in LTCB will get nothing from last year's forced nationalization. And Nomura - once the flagship of Japan's financial services industry - has recently announced losses of $4.6 billion, has been downgraded to junk status and has said goodbye to Max Chapman, the chairman and chief executive of Nomura Securities International.

Turkey: Sustaining the unsustainable

After so many years of gloom is there at last a glimmer of light in Nigeria? Following February's presidential election, the country's prospects for inward investment and economic stability have seldom looked brighter. Recent activity in the capital market may hint at economic improvement ahead. But fearsome problems remain and fast-track growth is still some way off. Philip Moore reports

Why has the merger of Chase and Chemical succeeded while others have not?

Euromoney has once again ranked the world's best hotels, airlines and airports according to the preferences of senior executives across the globe. Which are the world's favourite hotels for business travellers? And which airlines should you fly with and which should you avoid? Research and report by Carolyn Dowd.

To paraphrase American satirist PJ O'Rourke, if you buy yourself something with your own money, odds are that you'll spend time making sure you get exactly what you want. If you spend your own money on something for someone else, you won't be quite as careful. But if you're given money by one person and told to buy something for someone else, you're likely not to be careful at all.

Despite persistently high inflation and international financial turmoil, the Turkish economy continues to defy gravity. The country's banks lend to the treasury in lira at high interest rates. As a result, they can offer attractive interest rates on foreign currency deposits too. Armed with a fictitious $50,000, Metin Munir finds out just how good these rates can be and explores the role played by the banks in propping up Turkey's "unsustainable" economy. By Metin Munir.

Poland is about to force large numbers of its citizens to make private pension contributions. That should boost its capital markets. Peter Bennet reports

Big country, small - but beautifully formed - financial market. Why is Kazakhstan so different from its neighbours. David Shirreff The meek shall inherit the earth - or at least what's left of the Russian financial sector. Smaller banks with little exposure to government debt are flourishing. Ben Aris Private pension contributions are becoming mandatory in Poland. This should boost capital markets. But by how much? Peter Bennet Foreign players are fighting over the rich pickings on offer in Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary. Beyond this golden triangle there are many gems to be found for the most adventurous investment banks. Alex Mathias Bank privatization alone will not save Romania's economy. What else will it take to stabilize it? And is the government up to the task?

So, the succession at Chase is decided. Bill Harrison will inherit a bank riding high in the league tables, doing deals in the darkest days of the crisis and basking in the respect of its peers. How did Tom Labrecque and Walter Shipley do it? By rethinking the bank's whole approach to risk management and being able to say no to marriage proposals. But if it is to continue on this roll and become a true one-stop shop, Chase needs to do a deal sooner or later. Michelle Celarier reports.