Asia Pacific

The South Korean government is set to ease rules on loan loss reserves (LLR) in a boost to banks’ regulatory capital ratios. But the changes, announced on October 7 by the Financial Services Commission, could leave lenders less prepared for IFRS 9. Fitch Ratings has warned.

Deutsche Bank has hired a senior banker from UBS for the newly created role of Asia Pacific head of financial sponsors coverage.

China Industrial Securities International Financial Group has successfully priced a HK$1.3bn ($171.4m) IPO on Hong Kong’s Growth Enterprise Market, the largest on the board in nearly a decade.

China Resources Pharmaceutical Group’s HK$15.7bn ($2.0bn) Hong Kong IPO got off to a flying start this week, with books covered and support from high profile cornerstone investors giving it momentum.

Dongfeng Nissan Auto Finance is in the market with its second auto ABS of the year, opening books for a Rmb4bn ($595m) VINZ 2016-2 Retail Auto Loan Securitization on Thursday.

Doosan Bobcat’s planned W2.4tr ($2.2bn) IPO in South Korea fell through this week on the back of an over-aggressive pricing strategy. Investors also withdrew their support after poor communication from the leads apparently resulted in conflicting messages on the progress of the bookbuilding. John Loh reports.

Indian solar power company Azure Power Global has traded down on its debut on the Nasdaq stock exchange after pricing its IPO below the price guidance.

An increase in fundraising from financial institutions this year has helped an otherwise sluggish Asia ex-Japan syndicated loan market, as borrowers have found opportunistic windows to cut costs and extend maturities. But as corporate credit growth has slowed, bankers are sceptical about business prospects from the FIG sector, writes Shruti Chaturvedi.

TUS Holdings and a government financing vehicle from Zhuzhou sealed their respective bond offerings on Wednesday, with the former raking in $500m and the latter $300m.

China’s push to elevate the global status of the renminbi seems to be working well with the currency’s usage rate among global corporates going from strength to strength, according to the results of HSBC’s 2016 RMB Internationalisation Survey.

A diverse group of issuers forged ahead with their respective fundraisings on Thursday, seeking everything from dollars to Singapore dollars and green debt.

Already a pioneering issuer in the currency, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) believes greater regulatory clarity will provide a fresh boost to its onshore and offshore renminbi funding plans, Monish Mahurkar, director for treasury market operations, told GlobalRMB.