China

Chinese streaming platform Bilibili returned to the equity-linked market on Thursday, kicking off bookbuilding for a $650m convertible bond, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Shandong Hi-Speed Group Co and Taiyuan State-owned Investment Group were among the bond issuers on a relatively busy day for the primary dollar market on Wednesday.

The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) has scrapped a number of restrictions hampering the country's insurers from investing in perpetual bonds sold by smaller banks.

Alantra is buffing its credit portfolio advisory team with the addition of Marcus Evans and Christos Stefanidis, who will join as managing directors in the UK and Greece. The credit portfolio advisory firm is also opening up offices in Latin America and China.

Muddy Waters has fostered a fearsome reputation as a credible, thorough and forceful short seller whose explosive reports are a danger to anyone harbouring a stake in its intended target. Carson Block, its founder and chief investment officer, told GlobalCapital he has never been wrong about a company he’s shorted, though that doesn’t mean he’s made money from every position he has held. According to Block, monetary policies intended to stimulate markets through financial crises actually corrode them, and stifle accountability for serious failures in corporate governance.

China Ping An Insurance raised $600m in the bond market on Tuesday, after finding strong support from Asian investors during calls on Monday.

BOC Aviation leveraged on its ties to its Chinese state-owned parent and its own standalone credentials to raise $750m on Tuesday. It proved that it has access to bond market liquidity at a time when companies focused on aircraft leasing have been hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bond issuance from Chinese local governments is set to reach an all-time high this week, as issuers rush to use their existing quotas after authorities in Beijing unveiled the year’s funding allowance.

Toyota Motor Finance (China) sealed a Rmb4.5bn ($629m) dual-tranche auto securitization deal on Wednesday. Its return to the onshore market was the latest in a series of tightly priced auto ABS outings.

Chinese travel agency Trip.com Group has closed the senior syndication phase of a $1bn multi-tranche loan.

Chinese companies are likely to consider London as an alternative foreign listing venue, according to sources speaking to GlobalCapital, following a regulatory crackdown in New York and increased political tensions between the US and China.

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), the Nigeria-based multilateral development bank (MDBs), has emerged at the forefront of regional coronavirus rescue efforts, providing financing for emergency hospitals, medical aid and more. As Africa finds itself at the centre of global calls for emergency financing and debt relief, the AFC’s chief executive, Samaila Zubairu, talks to GlobalCapital about the bank’s response to the crisis, how its own fundraising plans have been affected, and the future of Chinese capital in the region.