North America

Apple and Walt Disney starred in the US corporate bond market this week, as the market roared back from the Labor Day holiday with a huge stack of deals that bankers said had broken the record for a single week in the US corporate and financial institution bond market.

UBS is revamping its investment bank to put the unit on a more global footing and boost collaboration across divisions, in a move that finally draws a line under the Andrea Orcel era.

The arrival of star Credit Suisse banker Iqbal Khan gives UBS’s chief executive Sergio Ermotti the chance to achieve his ambition of reaching a decade at the helm of the bank while securing a smooth transition, writes David Rothnie. Meanwhile, UBS’s restructuring, announced on Thursday, marks a focus on intragroup collaboration.

The International Finance Corp (IFC) hit screens this week with its first Canadian dollar green bond. The C$750m ($567m) print was the issuer’s largest ever in the currency, as well as the tightest an international SSA issuer has printed against the Canadian Mortgage Bond (CMB) curve, a large and liquid Canadian dollar benchmark.

HSBC Canada this week issued a larger covered bond and with a higher subscription ratio than it managed on its inaugural deal, reflecting that its marketing efforts had “really resonated with investors”, according to the bank’s head of balance sheet management, Marty Halpin.

Chinese online insurance platform Huize Holding is planning an up to $150m IPO of American Depository Shares (ADS), filing a draft prospectus with the market regulator on Wednesday.

Goldman Sachs has picked Marc Nachmann, co-head of the investment banking division, to jointly run its securities division in the US, following the retirement of Marty Chavez.

Alpek, the petrochemicals business of Mexican conglomerate Grupo Alfa, will look to the bond market to refinance short-term bank debt maturities.

The Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities Market Standards Board (FMSB), a body which aims to establish good practice and conduct standards in wholesale markets, is in a legal dispute with a former employee. It relates to expert witness work he conducted for an FX trading misconduct case involving Deutsche Bank, which is alleged to have complained about his involvement.

The International Finance Corp hit screens on Tuesday afternoon with its first Canadian dollar green bond. The C$750m ($567m) bond is the issuer's largest ever in the currency.

Latin American DCM bankers welcomed Tuesday’s blow-out bond issue from Mexico baking company Grupo Bimbo, saying that they believed it would trigger other borrowers to accelerate funding plans.

J2 Acquisition Ltd, a blank cheque company set up by former Jarden Corp chairman Martin Franklin, has signed a multi-billion dollar acquisition deal, almost two years on from its $1.25bn IPO on the London Stock Exchange.