Asia Pacific

Veteran capital markets banker Richard Taylor has left CLSA after more than two decades at the boutique investment bank.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) is speeding up the approval process for IPOs and follow-ons for companies impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, GlobalCapital China understands.

Yankee bank and insurance names took centre stage in the dollar market as US banks prepared to give their first insight into the impact of the coronavirus with the arrival of bank earnings season.

Infrequent issuers are slowly returning to the Swiss franc market. During the past week, Eurofima brought its first Swissies deal in six years, while biotech firm Lonza printed its first bond in any currency since 2017.

Social bonds are proving to be a key part of SSAs fight against the coronavirus, with $10.6bn equivalent printed since the start of the pandemic. Having already tapped core currency markets last month, this week a pair of supranationals turned towards niche currencies to fund their response to the pandemic. With demand for the social format high, both bankers and funding officials are hopeful the new investor interest will stick around after the pandemic passes.

Luckin Coffee seemed too good to be true. It was.

A group of banks that worked on Luckin Coffee’s IPO is facing questions after an alleged multi-billion renminbi fraud came to light last week. But some of the limelight has already been drawn away by another possible fraud case in China and a controversial short report, creating wider uncertainty around US-listed Chinese stocks. Jonathan Breen and Rebecca Feng report.

Chinese biopharmaceuticals firm Akesobio is preparing to launch bookbuilding for its IPO next week, according to a source close to the deal.

The controlling shareholder of South Korean entertainment company Studio Dragon raised W166.1bn ($136.2m) this week after selling a portion of its stake.

Singapore has imposed a month-long lockdown after a spike in coronavirus cases. Bankers say they were ready for the move — but deal flow will suffer. Rashmi Kumar reports.

Two Indonesian state-owned firms are planning $1bn loans, returning to the market despite a sharp rise in volatility as funding markets react to Covid-19. Bankers told GlobalCapital Asia that borrowers may need to scale back their ambitions. Pan Yue reports.

The government’s response to the coronavirus has forced me to spend more time at home. Unfortunately, my wife is doing the same thing.