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Even pension funds are showing an adventurous streak and investing in Russian equity. A tremendous inflow of foreign capital and an increasing foreign ADR market has made Russia the world's best performer so far this year and left some fund-managers waiting for a correction.

Belt-tightening is not easy, particularly when the belt is an imported fine leather one with a high-priced Louis Vuitton label. As the IMF urges financial self-control, Thailand's elite are finding the austerity package hard to swallow.

Some unusual rumblings have been heard from Singapore recently. In July the resignation was announced of Koh Beng Seng, deputy managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and reckoned to be the country's hard man of financial regulation. Then the prime minister persuaded him to withdraw his resignation and asked him to join a committee on banking deregulation. Behind the scenes, a furious debate is raging about the kind of financial centre Singapore should be.

Richard Wood's agreeable daily commute consists of a stroll across Prague's Charles Bridge while he looks at the castle and swans and thinks about what he has to do that day. "It beats the tube," he says.

Asset privatized: Svyazinvest

Managing director Asia, BankBoston

Wang Qishan is president of People's Construction Bank of China and chairman of cicc, its investment-banking joint venture with Morgan Stanley. His banking group is the third biggest in China by assets and employs half a million people. He was formerly a deputy governor of the People's Bank of China and is very highly regarded by China's economic chief, deputy premier Zhu Rongji - so much so that he's shortlisted to be the next central bank governor. He spoke frankly to Steven Irvine about Morgan Stanley, the joint venture and investment banking.

Finance Minister and Central Banker of the Year: The regional winners

The biggest contest in the 21st century will be to win in China. Whether it's IPOs, M&A or mutual funds, growth forecasts for China put all other markets in the shade. But the world's biggest potential market is also the toughest to crack. What's the right strategy? Steven Irvine looks at how the major investment banks are positioning themselves.

Rather than demonizing George Soros as the prime mover of the run on their currencies, Asian central bankers need to ask themselves hard questions. Why did the hedge funds go on the attack, and who provided the funding? Do they realize what banks are up to, have they decided which of these activities are legitimate, and are there any effective means of restraint? Laura Covill reports.

Did Bankers Trust buy Alex Brown to make itself more attractive to a potential buyer? And should NationsBank buy First Chicago to give it more bargaining power in any future merger talks, possibly with BankAmerica? As America awaits its biggest-ever banking mergers, such are the advanced strategies under discussion. All will become clear after the final round of mega-mergers, reports Peter Lee.

Regional governments are taking back control of local businesses in the name of saving jobs and preventing foreign speculators from taking over. While some observers regard this as an undesirable move, things could be worse. Renationalization, the bogey which haunted Russia's first few years of market reform, has melted away as the Kremlin moves to sell whatever mineral fortunes it has left. But relocalization is just gathering steam.