Americas

Cryptocurrencies had an incredible run last year, but for them to really hit the mainstream, their advocates should study the sort of old money institutions many of them oppose: central banks.

The US Federal Reserve Board has put forward a sweeping set of proposals to soften restrictions on proprietary trading under the Volcker rule, in a move that could free up banks to pursue more transactions related to underwriting and market making.

GDS Holdings added some much-needed diversity to Asia’s equity-linked market with its first print in the format on Thursday, which proved a hit with investors.

Chiles’s largest utility by installed capacity and number of clients is looking to become the first Latin American investment-grade company to tap dollar markets since May 3, after announcing investor meetings ahead of a proposed SEC-registered benchmark.

Toronto Dominion took advantage of a brief respite from volatility in the European government bond market to issue a €1bn seven year transaction on Wednesday.

Turkish assets have performed this week after a long period of weakness with two emerging markets portfolio managers saying that the worst of the volatility in the lira exchange rate may have passed.

Colombia’s inter-parliamentary Public Credit Commission on Tuesday approved a sovereign guarantee to Empresa Metro de Bogotá, the company managing the proposed construction of the city’s first subway line, opening the possibility of a bond issue.

Chinese used car e-commerce platform Uxin began investor education for a potential $500m Nasdaq IPO on Wednesday, said a banker on the deal.

Nasdaq-listed GDS Holdings has opened books for its debut equity-linked transaction worth up to $300m, offering investors an unusual seven year tenor and non-call life feature.

Public holidays in the US and UK gave bond markets an extra 24 hours to digest the results of Sunday’s presidential election in Colombia, though analysts are expecting little change as the first round of the vote went as expected.

Hunt Oil Company of Peru on Thursday sold the largest dollar-denominated bond deal from a Latin American issuer this month. Syndicate bankers took the deal as a positive even though investors said the issuer had been generous with pricing.

Nicolás Maduro’s comfortable and predicted victory in Sunday’s highly questioned presidential elections in Venezuela has reaffirmed the view of many bondholders that improvements in the crisis-stricken country are some way off.