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Despite the wave of telecoms equipment jitters felt by the market this week after Moody's cut US telecommunications company Nortel Network's rating by three notches to junk status on Monday (Baa3 to Ba3), Alcatel's Eu1.5bn multi-tranche facility has closed as a blow-out success. The loan has been increased to Eu2.075bn.

The $100m five year facility for Ashanti Goldfields Corp has proved a success in the market and is due to be closed next week. The response has been so favourable that a reserve list has been drawn up.

Rating: A2/BBB+/A- Amount: Eu500m

Citigroup/SSSB (bookrunner), CSFB, Deutsche Bank and HSBC (bookrunner and agent) have clinched the mandate to arrange a $1bn debt facility for Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company. The deal is split between a three year revolver that carries a margin of 30bp and a five year revolver paying 35bp.

The existing syndicate of banks that committed to the £130m five year dual tranche loan signed for healthclub chain Holmes Place in 2000 have been invited by Lloyds to recommit to the £190m refinancing. The terms and conditions of the deal have remained almost identical to the 2000 deal.

In the latest step to broaden its Japanese debt capital markets (DCM) team, ING has hired Toshihiro Hirose as managing director and head of institutional sales. Hirose, who is based in Tokyo, has spent 20 years working at Sumitomo Life, and his appointment reflects the Dutch bank's aim to gain a larger share of the Japanese investment banking market.

HMV Group, the UK-based media company, confirmed that the recovery in the IPO market is under way yesterday (Thursday) when it announced its £600m flotation.

HMV Group, the UK-based media company, confirmed that the recovery in the IPO market is under way yesterday (Thursday) when it announced its £600m flotation.

Investor demand in the sterling corporate bond market is swelling further down the credit curve, tightening the price of single-A issues. Last week's seven year £200m bond from BOC Group plc, rated A+/A by Standard & Poor's/Fitch, was priced on April 11 at 65bp over the 5.75% 2009 Gilt. One of the funds that took the BOC paper was HSBC's Corporate Bond Fund, a UK retail fund managed by Colin Storrar. "On the face of it, it doesn't look like a very cheap new issue, but demand is that strong," he said.

Arranger HSBC has closed the HK$5bn six year fundraising for PCCW-HKT. Allocations are being finalised and will be released today (Friday). Arrangers ICBC, FleetBoston Financial and China Merchants Bank have launched a $200m term loan for China Merchants Holdings.

DZ Bank has closed syndication of the Eu50m term loan for Hungarian Foreign Trade Bank (MKB). Mandated arranger is Deutsche Bank. Co-arrangers are Baden-Württembergische Bank, Banque et Caisse d'Epargne de l'Etat, BBL Financial Services Dublin, Deutsche Postbank, Erste Bank, Landesbank Schleswig-Holstein, Norddeutsche Landesbank, WGZ-Bank and Zürcher Kantonalbank.

Gazprom looks set to price its $500m five year debut bond today (Friday) with a book of at least $1bn and at a spread to the sovereign of a mere 100bp. The book was closed yesterday afternoon to accounts that are not already in the deal, or not due to meet the roadshow team in London today. If Gazprom does get away an oversubscribed bond at such a level, it will prove that investors are so hungry for anything that can credibly call itself a proxy for the Russian government that they will overlook weak presentation skills and poor disclosure.