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For those in the world of grown-up finance, the cryptocurrency world has often been the subject of amused scorn or mild envy. It is very much its own game, and it scarcely seems to inhabit the same world as staid, professional markets like that for commercial paper. But all that is changing and regulators must pay attention.

If you are like me, an English football fan living in Hong Kong, it has been a month of cheering, cursing, singing and over-imbibing.

China's latest crackdown of three of its technology companies has a clear message for firms looking to list in the US — and investors wanting to buy their shares.

Attitudes to new technologies in finance have, over the past 10 years, become polarised into two categories: the zealot and the luddite. This isn’t good enough.

GlobalCapital invites market participants to submit nominations for this year’s Covered Bond Awards, which recognise excellence in the industry over the past year.

Banks that have access to diverse pockets of demand will be far better equipped to deal with any contraction in central bank liquidity, which could occur if high inflation spooks policy makers and markets.

The G20 has given hope to those wishing to see multilateral development banks increase their lending by stretching their capital further. If a breakthrough is made, ratings will be a crucial part of it.

The EU has made a quick start to funding its €800bn Next Generation EU programme in the bond market, with €25bn done in two of three syndications scheduled for June and July. But will the huge level of borrowing turn out to be as temporary as promised?

The possible flotation of a Russian hospitals group is being billed as a revival of the country’s IPO market, with more deals to follow. Bankers pointed to the recent US-Russian summit in Switzerland as cause for optimism but investors should remain as sceptical as they appear to be about the rest of the IPO market.

The next 10 years will be tough for central and eastern Europe, economically and politically. Willingly or not, it will have to cut carbon emissions. States in the EU have agreed deep reductions by 2030. But exactly how, when and where the changes come remains to be thrashed out. None of it will be easy — and one of the most important tasks will be to retain the confidence of financial markets. Jon Hay reports.

An exciting rebound in the flow of China-into-US listings took an unexpected hit last week when online grocery start-up, Missfresh, plummeted on the first day of trading. While this is worrying, investors are still positive around these IPOs.

The tide of leveraged finance docs has gone out, and it isn’t coming back in. Lenders have only the comforting embrace of sponsors to rely on. But that’s the game today, and you have to play it.