Oceania

Rabobank has announced two senior management changes to its Australia and New Zealand operations, promoting Peter Knoblanche and Todd Charteris from within.

Swedish lender Swedbank kept Australian dollar supply ticking over on Tuesday, pricing its first bond in the currency since 2008.

KfW has found stronger than expected demand after tapping the belly of its Kangaroo bond curve, as a Canadian province printed at the long end in the format.

After weeks of volatility and fractious executions in Europe's corporate bond markets, BHP Billiton has pulled off the biggest ever corporate hybrid bond sale, proving investors are open to buying even quite challenging deals, if they come with lashings of yield, writes Ross Lancaster.

Rentenbank has responded to pent-up demand for Australian dollar paper with the largest long dated Kangaroo bond from a public sector borrower since July.

Australia and New Zealand Bank has hired from within for its new chief executive, promoting Shayne Elliott to the job.

The European Commission’s proposals to harmonise covered bond regulations across Europe could benefit the market — but will have the biggest impact on covered bond issuers from outside Europe.

ING is making a return to the Australian RMBS market with its well-established IDOL series, which is expected to free up A$750m ($526m) for the Dutch lender.

Korean banks have pulled back from the Samurai market, as funding costs have moved against them, but some other names have stepped into the breach. Australian banks are a key fixture in the Samurai markets, while the arrival of Maybank this year gives a pointer to future issuance. Asia Pacific financial institutions issuers are also proving instrumental in the steady development of the Pro-Bond market. Volatility in China, however, is not helping anybody. In September, some of Asia Pacific’s leadering FIG borrowers spoke to GlobalCapital about prospects in the Japanese capital markets.

Japan’s debt market is not often known for its structural diversity, but a smattering of bank capital deals over the past year-and-a-half have provided a rare treat for yield-starved investors. There is little reason, though, to think supply will approach the level local investors would like for a long time to come. Matthew Thomas reports.

ING Belgium and Bawag received good receptions for their covered bonds issued this week, in contrast to less spectacular outcomes for deals from Westpac New Zealand and UniCredit.

Asiamoney is pleased to present its choices for Asia’s Best Managed Companies 2015. The winners were the firms that impressed us the most through a combination of factors including innovation, financial performance and strategic execution, and after also surveying the views of regional analysts and investors. Our congratulations to all those chosen.