Europe

The performance of IPOs priced in the last few months has markedly improved in the past few weeks, ending 2017 on a more optimistic note than may have looked likely a couple of weeks ago.

Ignazio Visco, the governor of the Bank of Italy, told lawmakers in Rome this week that Europe’s bank rescue rules did not help with the ‘speed and effectiveness’ of dealing with the country’s recent banking crises.

Vonovia, the German housing company, is likely to issue debt next year, to finance its €5.2bn cash offer for Austrian peer Buwog, announced on Monday morning.

Olivier Grimonpont, veteran of bond clearing platform Euroclear, will step up to the role of CEO of GlobalCollateral, a collateral management venture between Euroclear and the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.

Offshore renminbi liquidity could get a shot in the arm as Shanghai Clearing House (SHCH) joins hands with R5, a London-based FX platform, to create a link between the FX markets in the UK and China. The move is also set to widen Chinese banks’ access to global currencies.

HSBC has appointed an experienced investment banker as a vice-chairman in global banking, to help drive its UK business.

Three bankers' jobs are understood to be at risk at Rabobank in London, including one experienced loans banker.

Savannah Petroleum, the UK oil and gas company focusing on African exploration, has secured a partnership with ASMA Capital Partners, a Bahraini fund manager which invests on behalf of the Islamic Development Bank, as part of its equity capital raising, which is set to be priced today.

The sterling high yield market is set to start 2018 in shape, with investors and bankers expecting strong supply and demand. Pure Gym, the UK low cost gym operator, could be one of its first issuers.

Norilsk Nickel, the Russian nickel and palladium producer, has signed a $2.5bn unsecured syndicated loan, the largest facility from Russia this year.

The Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM), the European Union’s system of banking supervision, has laid out its priorities and risks for banks over the coming year. There was a particular focus on Brexit and stress testing.

The share prices of trading platforms took a hit on Monday morning after the European Securities Markets Authority said it might crack down on binary options and contracts for difference traded by retail investors.