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Guarantor: Argenta Banque d'Epargne, Argenta Societe d'Investissement, Argenta Bank en Verzekeringsgroep Amount: Eu50m

Alfa Laval, the Swedish specialist engineering firm, kicked off premarketing for its Skr9bn (Eu990m) IPO this week. Alfa Laval has appointed Credit Suisse First Boston and Enskilda Securities to lead one of a slew of IPOs that are scheduled for the second quarter in Europe as issuers and investors alike seek to take advantage of improved macro-economic conditions.

Ark Therapeutics, the UK biotechnology group, has announced its intention to list on the London Stock Exchange in an IPO that could be worth as much as £40m. This will be the first listing of a biotech company on the London exchange since 2000 and it is a deal that is sure to test investors' appetite for risk. In 2001 investors made it clear that the growth stock IPOs that had seen so much success in 1999 and early 2000 were no longer part of their strategy.

AT&T Wireless Services was forced to delay launch and widen price talk on a $3bn issue of global bonds this week amid a worldwide collapse in debt and equity prices in the telecoms sector.

AT&T Wireless Services was forced to delay launch and widen price talk on a $3bn issue of global bonds this week amid a worldwide collapse in debt and equity prices in the telecoms sector.

Rating: Baa2/BBB Amount: $3bn

It hasn't been the happiest of times for Swiss banks over the past six months. Poor Credit Suisse is being hammered by the local Zurich press and chairman, Lukas Mühlemann, is hanging on by his fingertips. The chances of Credit Suisse First Boston staying independent is now, according to the bookmakers, 18 months at the outside. Profits at Vontobel and Julius Baer, have dropped off and Switzerland's wealthiest investor, Martin Ebner, has run into a brick wall in Scandinavia. Is UBS therefore the country's last great hope of maintaining some credibility in the global banking amphitheatre? We always thought that UBS was a rather underrated shop - the impression is that it genuinely wants to be a Bergdorf Goodman or Saks Fifth Avenue, but when you open the door, you find yourself in a local 7-Eleven.

Fearing the loss of market share when volume in the European loan market is dangerously low, lending banks that have fallen behind in the league tables are turning to highly skilled veterans to help beef up their loans business. So the Euroloan market has been abuzz this week with news that three high profile bankers have been asked to captain new loan crews at ING, Bank of America and Dexia Crédit Local and steer the banks to success.

Barclays Capital and JP Morgan have provided a A$450m six month bridge facility to NTL Australia Pty. Proceeds will finance the acquisition of the borrower from NTL Inc of the US by Macquarie Bank and will be taken out by a syndicated loan or a capital markets issue at a later date.

With an April 18 deadline for bids, bankers have been working hard on finding the right structure for the proposed $650m Bahrain Petroleum Corporation (Bapco) loan facility. The key question exercising bankers is whether the transaction requires export credit agency support or not. Some bankers are arguing strongly that ECA cover would help while others feel the deal has enough merits to be financed on an uncovered basis. Bankers arguing against ECA involvement point to the quasi-sovereign nature of the credit.

Fearing the loss of market share when volume in the European loan market is dangerously low, lending banks that have fallen behind in the league tables are turning to highly skilled veterans to help beef up their loans business. So the Euroloan market has been abuzz this week with news that three high profile bankers have been asked to captain new loan crews at ING, Bank of America and Dexia Crédit Local and steer the banks to success.

Rating: A2/A+/A Amount: £200m