Citi

A year can go by without an IPO in Prague, but this week has brought two. The day after GE Money Bank set out to float, Energetický a průmyslový holding (EPH), the Czech coal, gas and power company, began investor education for its plan to list EP Infrastructure, its energy transmission and distribution business.

A hungry euro market gorged on deals from France and the European Union on Tuesday, instilling confidence that a trio of trades on Wednesday’s menu will go well — despite two of them being in the same tenor.

South African furniture retailer Steinhoff International has nearly completed syndication of its £920m loan to buy French retailer Darty, according to a banker close to the deal.

PNB Housing Finance has made changes to the bank group leading its $400m Indian IPO, bringing in Bank of America Merrill Lynch to replace Barclays as a lead manager, according to a source close to the trade.

Chinese brokerage Orient Securities Co has applied for the go ahead to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in an IPO that could raise $1.5bn, according to sources with knowledge of the deal.

Korea Resources Corp (KoRes) managed to brush away concerns about Moody’s decision to review its rating for a downgrade, raising more than expected from its latest bond outing. The deal’s high quality order book stood out when compared with some other recent transactions from peers.

Chinese search engine company Baidu is dipping its toes into the international loan market for a $1bn debut fundraising, following in the heels of other technology majors like Alibaba Group and Tencent.

GE Money Bank, the Czech retail and SME bank, announced its intention to float on Monday, as its parent General Electric executes its plan to sell most of its financial services operations.

Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten, FMO, Japan Bank for International Cooperation and the Province of Quebec all hit screens on Monday for forthcoming dollar deals, with bankers remarking that the SSA market could be set for another hectic week.

Korea Resources Corp (KoRes) is poised for its first appearance of the year in the international bond market, opening books on Monday for a Reg S dollar offering.

A $465m 21 month refinancing for Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) has received one commitment since its launch into syndication in mid February.

Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) on Tuesday threw open the door for dollar issuance as the second quarter of the calendar year kicked off, with several other issuers eagerly following.