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The Russian-Ukraine crisis has risen from its slumber in a roaring angry temper. Russia’s next recovery in the capital markets may not be as quick or as painless.

Bankers have a reputation for being pretty rude and arrogant, and, in some instances, probably with justification. But just how combative some of them can be came as a shock to me this week.

The European Financial Stability Facility, fresh from hitting the bid for short-dated bonds with a one year early this month, went to the other extreme and set out with a debut 30 year on Tuesday. With blow-out deals at the extreme ends of the curve it is proving itself to be a savvy issuer.

Islamic bankers don’t need new excuses to travel to the world’s sunnier climes, but meetings in Mauritius next to its pristine coral sand beaches could soon become a feature of the market — and not just for obvious reasons.

UK supermarket chain J Sainsbury has signed what it has called the first ever corporate green loan. But aside from some positive PR for the firm, it’s hard to see the direct benefits the green label will provide to lenders or borrowers in the loan market.

Xiaomi’s $1bn financing has become a talking point among bankers. The Chinese mobile phone company has ambitious plans for expansion but there is concern in some quarters over how it has chosen to execute its debut. The company should brace itself for an uphill climb. Closing this deal isn’t going to be easy.

Public outrage is a lot faster than the digestion of an IPO. But thanks to a timely profit warning, at last they're getting in sync.

IFRS 13 “Fair Value Measurement” became effective 1st of January 2013. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) issued IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) 13 in May 2011 to improve the consistency of fair value measurements. IFRS 13 establishes a single source of guidance for fair value measurements for all financial instruments. It clarifies the definition of fair value in general as an exit price and enhances disclosures about all fair value measurements.

The perils of ever taking a holiday in the fast moving world of capital markets journalism were never more in evidence than this week, when a hapless Blog reporter emailed the European Union’s senior borrowing advisor Herbert Barth with a request for an interview.

KfW this week stamped its mark in the green bond market, printing a bond that is the largest ever single tranche green deal, the biggest new green issue by a supranational or agency borrower and the first to include quantitative impact assessment. The deal’s secondary pricing performance will be watched eagerly by bankers as a bond of this size and liquidity should help market participants determine where green bonds should be priced versus standard bonds — if they should be priced differently at all.

Taipan popped back in the UK this week as it wouldn’t be summer if I didn’t spend a few days at Lord’s watching England being beaten at cricket by one of the former colonies — talk about the Empire Strikes Back. It also provided me with a chance to drink proper pints of bitter and catch up with my old chums who I started on the trading floor with.

You might think the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority had enough on its plate. The UK regulator has a wide remit, running from insider trading to insurance, and from Wonga to Warburg Pincus. So why is it proposing another review of whether investment banks are competitive enough?