Greater China

A big spike in the interbank rate for offshore renminbi has cast doubts over the development of the nascent CNH Hibor loan market. The changes in the overnight rates unnerved bankers, who responded that a wait-and-watch approach would be the most sensible, writes Shruti Chaturvedi.

China’s Panda bond market has gained further momentum with successful issues from a pair of offshore listed companies on the country’s exchange market.

Taiwanese conglomerate Formosa Plastics Group has launched a $2.5bn dual tranche loan into syndication.

Citi has created a consolidated Asia Pacific debt syndicate team to sniff out opportunities in local currency issuance, while Deutsche Bank has appointed a senior executive to head debt syndicate and origination in the region.

While nursing a whiskey at the China Club this week, I couldn’t help but notice a group of bankers crowded around some tables in the corner. While they typically wouldn’t catch my eye, what drew my attention was that they all had a tipple in their hands but seemed too busy muttering expletives to drink anything.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch is moving back to a co-head structure for its Asia Pacific global corporate and investment banking unit, with Elif Bilgi Zapparoli promoted to the role, according to a memo seen by GlobalCapital Asia.

January kicked off with China front and centre as the upheaval in its stock market caused indices across the globe to tumble. South and southeast Asia did not escape unscathed but the chances are that when markets stabilise, investors will be eager for equity issuance from the region.

The Securities Association of China (SAC) has released further guidelines on underwriting and allocation for IPOs, in line with the new rules issued by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).

Asia’s primary dollar bond market has seesawed since the start of the year, with paralysis one day and a flood of deals the next. This has caused market participants to scramble to come up with different strategies to navigate the market, writes Narae Kim.

Hong Kong Airlines had to navigate a crowded primary market on January 13 to price its first dollar bond and raise $180m in the process.

Volatility in Chinese equity and foreign exchange markets is spooking investors but the cheaper RMB and more reasonable valuations for A-shares might provide an ideal entry point for investment into the Mainland.

Deutsche Bank is forecasting net Panda bond issuance of Rmb20bn this year as part of a wider deepening of China’s onshore bond market including greater access for foreign investors.