Greater China

Tsinghua Unigroup, part of Chinese state-owned Tsinghua Holdings, is considering increasing the size of its $300m debut syndicated loan after commitments of nearly double the amount poured in.

China Opportunity International is pursuing a $620m secured note, backed by a basket of onshore renminbi denominated bonds.

In this round-up, People’s Bank of China defends its use of foreign exchange (FX) reserves to preserve stability in the currency markets, two new entities are added to the RMB qualified institutional investors (RQFII) programme, and Hungary’s central bank signs an agreement to expand access to the Chinese capital markets. Plus, a recap of our coverage this week.

Central American development bank Cabei began its funding for 2017 by issuing more than $100m-equivalent in niche currencies, the bank’s head of capital and financial markets told GlobalCapital.

ANZ names new Oz loan syndications head — SBI Capital Markets, CIMB India lose ECM bankers — JP Morgan hires for China research

Investors had to get to grips with the dynamics of Mainland water supply this week as China Water Affairs Group made a $300m debut on Wednesday.

One thing my contemporaries in banking can never be accused of is lacking optimism. And sometimes, the tactics they deploy to stay positive amid dwindling deal flow surprises even me.

China’s financial markets have undergone a huge transformation over the past few years with a series of reforms aimed at improving access for foreign investors and liberalising its exchange rate mechanism. GlobalRMB reached out to several industry bodies to get a sense of initiatives they are working on and where China’s reform priorities lie this year.

Renminbi internationalisation struggled to make progress in 2016 with RMB payments declining by close to 30%, according to Swift.

Qingdao Port International Co is seeking the OK from shareholders for an H-share placement that could raise around HK$1.03bn ($132.8m), according to a filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Fujian Zhanglong Group Co raised $150m from a tap on Tuesday, in a deal driven by reverse enquiry and anchored by indications of interest ahead of launch.

The Irish regulators are looking to facilitate European investments into China, following the award of an RMB qualified foreign institutional investor (RQFII) quota to Ireland as well as prepping for the launch of the China-Hong Kong ETF Connect.