Europe

A senior director in the capital markets funding team at a German agency has left to join UniCredit’s FIG team in Munich, GlobalCapital understands.

Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca has entered into a collaboration agreement with Japanese pharmaceutical company Daiichi Sankyo to develop a new antibody-drug conjugate which it is hoped will revolutionise cancer treatment. The deal is being funded through an equity capital raise.

Credit Suisse has appointed David Krap as head of Northern European M&A.

Talos Capital has sold a €191.4m stake in Aena SME, the Spanish airport operator, capping off the biggest week for equity block trades in Europe this year.

Centerbridge Partners has sold a €119.2m chunk of its stake in Banca Farmafactoring, the Italian factoring company that specialises in payments owed by public institutions to the healthcare sector, after the stock has rebounded since October.

Following a flurry of corporate deals earlier in the month, financial institution issuers took control of the primary Swiss franc bond market this week.

In this round-up: January-February industrial profits plummet, Luxembourg Stock Exchange agrees to post China domestic green bond data, Shanghai tech board waves through eight more

In this round-up the Ministry of Finance cut the subsidy for purchasing new energy vehicles by more than half, Ireland-domiciled funds gained a new way to access the Chinese interbank bond market, and China's central bank opens up

Forget the anti-EU politicians preparing to make gains in the upcoming European Parliament elections. Just as in the eurozone crisis, it is the incumbents holding up reform in the bloc.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development plans to raise its new investment to more than €10bn in 2019 for the first time in the bank’s history, after suffering a fall last year as it took a hit to its profits. By Phil Thornton.

JPM securitization banker leaves — Goldman Brexiter quits for politics — Balax enrols in fintech course

The wave of demand that has poured into the European corporate bond market since January, sweeping spreads tighter, paused this week. Deals were still priced at tight levels, but most had at least some new issue concession and the tone definitely felt more “normal”, as one banker said.