Europe

Alastair Blackman, formerly a top media investment banker at Deutsche Bank, will be developing relationships with the heads of UK firms on behalf of Barclays from next month.

General Electric’s bond spreads have widened substantially since last Thursday, when a research report by Harry Markopolos, the Bernie Madoff whistleblower, accused the US conglomerate of major fraud, by hiding $38bn of losses. However, the initial jolt has not turned into a rout, and while some bond investors see cause for concern, others are sceptical of Markopolos’ claims and do not expect the report to spell GE’s doom.

Idriss Amor has joined Bank of America Merrill Lynch as a rates trader for emerging markets.

Danish agency KommuneKredit mandated banks on Monday for its first euro-denominated bond of the year and the first euro syndicated public sector bond since mid-July, excluding German regions.

Equity capital markets investors are becoming increasingly focused on sustainable investments, particularly those linked to renewable energy. The strength of this demand could be tested this autumn, should Spanish renewable energy firm Zero-E choose to list.

RSA Insurance Group is looking at selling a new senior bond in sterling, as investors in the UK currency look forward to a bumper year for issuance from the insurance sector.

The UK Debt Management Office is seeking views from its primary dealer group and other interested parties for a tender offer for a conventional Gilt.

ASB Finance Limited has announced plans to sell either a covered bond or a senior bond next month, as FIG bankers suggested that issuers would be careful about restarting supply following a volatile summer period.

Medicover is on the hunt for at least €100m of funding in the Schuldschein market. The Swedish healthcare company joins a growing number of Nordic borrowers looking to tap the German loans market.

The European Central Bank said on Thursday that AS PNB Banka was "failing or likely to fail", marking the second time in as many years that a Latvian bank has been declared insolvent.

Deutsche Pfandbriefbank announced on Friday that it is planning to meet investors in the sterling market next week to gauge appetite for a possible senior preferred bond.

This week's funding scorecard looks at the progress that Europe's supranationals and agencies have made in their funding programmes by the mid-point of August.