Greater China

Pacific Basin Shipping has proposed a rights issue to raise HK$1.2bn ($150.6m) as it sees the dry bulk shipping market bouncing back from one of its most difficult periods in over 30 years.

A senior member of Citi’s Asia Pacific securitized products unit has left the bank, sources close to the move have told GlobalCapital Asia.

Chinese electronics distributor Smart-Core Cloud Group has filed a draft prospectus with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, hiring DBS Bank as the sole sponsor of its IPO.

Global fund managers who can set up their China business around opportunities in both onshore and cross-border flows will be best placed to take advantage of China’s ongoing opening of its capital account, according to Z-Ben Advisors.

The head of Natixis’ Asia Pacific debt platform Devan Selvanathan is leaving after more than four years at the bank, according to sources close to the move.

China Aoyuan Property Group hit the market for a three year dollar bond on Monday in what is only the fourth transaction in the currency this year from the country’s high yield property sector.

The Export-Import Bank of China is poised to return to the offshore bond market this week, lining up banks to hold investor calls for a dual-currency, triple-tranche offering.

The recently established New Development Bank Brics (NDB Brics) has mandated four Chinese banks and two global banks on its upcoming debut bond outing — an onshore renminbi-denominated green offering. The proceeds will be used to support the supranational’s green projects, several sources close to the deal told GlobalRMB.

Nomura has cut up to 30 jobs in its Asia ex-Japan equities unit amid a wider shake up in its overseas operations, with personnel leaving across cash equity, research and equity syndicate.

CLSA said in a research report released on Friday that it expects the renminbi to weaken by 25% in the next 20 months, predicting more pain for the region before the currency starts rebounding in 2018.

In this round-up, trade settlement picked up in March, Asian exchanges saw declining USDCNY futures volumes, Nigeria will include the RMB in its FX reserves, a survey found the RMB is likely to replace the Hong Kong dollar as most popular currency in HK, and a new cross-border scheme was established between Singapore and China. Plus, a recap of GlobalRMB's top stories this week.

Despite a growing pipeline, Panda bond issuance has been stymied by foreign exchange volatility and regulatory issues around auditing and remittance of proceeds. Market participants are working closely with China on the problems and expect regulators to address the accounting requirements in the coming months.