North America

Electric vehicle maker Li Auto is planning to float American Depository Shares (ADS) on the Nasdaq. It is eyeing $100m in proceeds.

Each week, Keeping Tabs brings you the very best of what we have found most useful, interesting and informative from around the web. This week: liquidity in the age of central banks, making bank capital green, and US fiscal stimulus.

US corporate bond issuers got straight back to business after the July 4 weekend as 11 borrowers raised $10.8bn, though the volume of issuance is tapering off as companies head into earnings blackouts.

Japanese duo Mizuho and Nomura both hit the market with new issues on Monday as the primary market re-opened on a positive note following the July 4 holiday weekend.

Philip Brown and Sanaa Mehra are leading a new unit at Citi, the latest the bank has designed for its sustainable finance business.

Sodexo, the French food service and facilities management firm, saw bumper demand for its €1bn no-grow dual-tranche bond issue on Wednesday, a day after it reported a 30% drop in revenue, and weeks after it shocked the US private placement (PP) market by saying it would repay around $1.6bn of debt early as it could do better in other financing markets.

John Muncey has joined Barclays as vice-chairman of its consumer retail group (CRG) in Europe and the Middle East, while Jamshed Kakalia has been promoted to lead the consumer business in that team.

Mexican lender Banorte and Colombia’s second largest telecoms company began investor calls on Monday as Latin American borrowers look for funding in the wake of a rally that reawakened issuer interest in bond markets.

Lu Zhengyao will remain chairman of Chinese chain Luckin Coffee after a vote to remove him went in his favour.

Barclays appoints levfin and sponsors leaders — Créd Ag gives Goldfischer UK role — BTIG hires Huggins

Takeda Pharmaceutical was the standout issuer as US high grade corporate bond issuance ground to a halt this week, ahead of the July 4 holiday.

Exchangeable bonds are emerging as a key coronavirus tool for corporates — one they can use to monetise stakes in companies they own without having to concede large discounts by selling shares.