Western governments hope Russian citizens will blame the regime of president Vladimir Putin and seek change. That is a gamble.

In just a few years, the New Eurasian Land Bridge, which conveys rail freight between China and Europe, became a key part of Beijing’s fading Belt and Road Initiative. Thanks to sanctions levied against state operator Russian Railways, that vital trade link threatens to be disrupted – and possibly severed.

Not all heroes wear capes. But some do.

Decades of work have been put into building Russia’s financial system. Putin’s war is destroying it overnight.

Russians could try to use cryptocurrencies to dodge sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine, but a move into the mainstream by crypto exchange heads hungry for fiat currency wealth will complicate evasion tactics.

Energy price volatility driven by war in Ukraine could deliver a windfall to banks such as Goldman Sachs that retain scale in commodity trading. Profits from dealing can also be made without triggering ESG or sanctions-related pain.

Why do Saudi Arabia and Malaysia still overwhelm every other state in Islamic asset management?

The spectre of 2003’s global research settlement is looming over the world of equity block trades.

It’s rare to see a sovereign fund backing a digital bank before its launch.

The trial of former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng over the 1MDB scandal has been filled with so much tawdry and tantalizing detail that it can be easy to overlook some of the less sensational, but nevertheless remarkable, material.

Until recently, poor nations joined the Belt and Road Initiative to secure access to funds flowing to the vast infrastructure project. Then the funds started to dry up. Does this presage a full-scale financial pull-back from the world by China?

Toshiba has unveiled a new restructuring format, but its roster of activist shareholders would much prefer the business be taken private.

For four years, a criminal case brought by an Australian regulator against Citi, Deutsche Bank, ANZ and six bankers who were facing jail has looked ill-judged, acting retrospectively against common market practice in a share placement. Now it has collapsed and lessons need to be learned

SoftBank’s likely choice of the US to list Arm might say something about UK equity investor culture, but using it as evidence that London reform efforts are failing is a step too far.

February 2022

Crossed wires on an analyst call had many scratching their heads.

Share buybacks are suddenly commonplace in European banking, as supervisors are more wary about touching dividends – and because banks lack better use for their new capital surpluses.

Calling time on the virtual meeting room

What is the point of hoarding cash when not even the local convenience store takes it anymore?  

The first month of 2022 has seen not so much a mean reversion as a collapse in investment banking revenues. Investors must hope this won’t continue.

The rationale behind a bank buyback can be different in emerging versus developed markets.

The chance to acquire Citi’s Mexican business could attract some unexpected bidders.

Wage inflation leads to substantial cost increases at major Wall Street banks.

The trend continues for ever more dramatic accusations in US legal filings.

Last year, social was top of the ESG agenda. Today, it barely merits a mention.

Falls in bond and equity prices that followed the Fed’s hawkish pivot may just be the start, with the key test still to come in new issue markets.

Policymakers around the world are rushing to protect retail investors from buying products that are less sustainable than they believe them to be. Why?

Will the bank’s payouts after a phishing scam set a precedent?

Big numbers don’t always tell a story, but January saw one pop up in three different places. How they connect is intriguing.

Southeast Asia markets enjoyed a record 2021. Can they build on this?