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Merrill Lynch hopes to have drawn a line under the investigation into its research practices after reaching a $100m agreement with the New York state attorney general, Eliot Spitzer, on Tuesday. Spitzer had been investigating internet sector research conducted at the firm between 1999 and 2001, after suggestions that equity analysts had been misleadingly bullish on stocks of certain clients of the investment banking division. The inquiry centred on e-mails in which analysts allegedly scorned internet stocks despite publicly giving them a favourable recommendation.

The market struggled to focus on anything this week but the yo-yo activities of Deutsche Telekom as it fought to price its jumbo transaction. Having revised the price talk three times, Deutsche, JP Morgan and Citigroup/SSSB hope to price the Eu5bn three tranche deal today (Friday) at levels consistent with initial price talk.

Institutional investors were left unmoved by Tuesday's news of the settlement between the New York State Attorney General, Eliot Spitzer, and Merrill Lynch, over charges that the firm had misled investors with its research. EuroWeek spoke to members of the industry this week to gauge attitudes towards sellside research, and examine new developments in the field.

More bad news was heaped on the the Wembley National Stadium project this week with the news that the National Audit Office (NAO) is to launch an investigation into scheme. The move comes after independent reports concluded that the bidding process conducted by Wembley National Stadium Limited for the concession to design and build the project was not sufficiently transparent.

HSBC has clinched the mandate to arrange a new debt facility to back Westbury's acquisition of house construction firm Prowting plc. The size of the loan has not been finalised but it will be between £400m and £450m and pricing will be between 100bp and 125bp over Libor. Syndication will be launched in about two weeks' time. HSBC has fully underwritten the loan.

Guarantor: WestLB Rating: Aa1/AA+/AAA

Goldman Sachs has been added to the dealer panel off Reuters' £

Punch Taverns produced a hint of optimism for the IPO market this week when its relaunched and resized flotation rose by 5.4%. The success of the £160m IPO, which resurfaced on Monday just days after being pulled, surprised bankers but gave the market hope that investors will buy new issues if they are cheap enough.

Rating: A (S&P) Amount: Eu75m

Rating: Aaa/AAA Amount: Eu500m Öffentlicher Pfandbrief series 760 (fungible with four issues totalling Eu1.25bn first launched 12/01/98)

Amount: Eu250m Legal maturity: May 15, 2035

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