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One of Germany's great tacticians and diplomatic fixers, Horst Köhler is poised to step up from German domestic sagas to an international arena as the next president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

A smell of disinfected newness lingers in the London office of Bank Austria Creditanstalt Futures. Launched on June 1, it's the first venture in the western hemisphere to use the recently merged bank's name and corporate red is much in evidence; from the trendily designed logos emblazoning the walls to the leather sofa in reception.

Choudri Mueen Afzal, Pakistan's new secretary of finance, talks the language of reform - thinner government, improved tax collection and a sharper financial sector. People like him will carry Pakistan to the next stage of development

Mergers and acquisitions continue to transform the asset-management business, as the latest InterSec Research Corporation ranking of the largest 250 non-US asset managers shows. The table provides a snapshot of the industry at year-end 1998 and many of the most eye-catching changes from the year before - both in terms of managers' positions in the ranking and the value of assets under management - are the result of industry consolidation. UBS rises from third to second position, leapfrogging Groupe Axa of France. In 1997, the old UBS had a total of $485.5 million under management. By the end of 1998, following consummation of the merger of Swiss Bank Corp and UBS, the new UBS had $1,144.5 billion under management, putting it closer to perennial ranking leader Kampo of Japan which had $1,685.4 billion under management at the end of 1998. In a recent interview with Euromoney, UBS chief executive Marcel Ospel underlined the bank's appetite for expanding in private banking, an asset management-type business, both by building and through acquisition.

With its tall ancient trees and exquisite lawns studded with marble antiques, the Nakkastepe headquarters of Koc Holdings look like an Ottoman aristocratic home from which the lord of the manor is absent on a prolonged journey. Situated on a tall hill on the Asian side of Istanbul, far from the madding crowds of Europe's noisiest city, the walled compound exudes an old-world peace.

What species of bank will fill the ecological niches of the new Europe? Noel Gordon describes the type of creatures - value capturers, optimizers, consolidators and innovators - who may survive.

Last National Bank of Boot Hill, London, EC2

Sharp-end derivatives players in the US are addressing the difficulties of transition to the euro, but the average end-user is still dreaming. Isda is pushing its Emu protocol, with mixed results. Michelle Celarier reports.

What will be the swap dealing conventions after the introduction of the euro? A recent survey gauged the expectations of market players. Antoine Kohler reports on the results.

Times may be tough in emerging markets but strong banks are doing more than just surviving. Experienced in dealing with volatility, many banks are both withstanding the shocks and positioning themselves for the next upturn. By Brian Caplen.

Could it be that Chase is not as solid as we had all been led to believe? The US bank has been eyeing acquisitions recently, leading everyone to assume that it is in rude financial health. But events at last month's five-kilometre run, the Chase Corporate Challenge at Battersea Park in London, suggested otherwise.