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Kristine Falkgard Aged 33 Head of international funding, Kommunalbanken How long have you been in MTNs? I rejoined Kommunalbanken in August 1999, after having spent three years changing nappies in Brussels. Kommunalbanken signed its euro4 billion ($3.55 billion) MTN programme in January 2000 and I have been heading our international funding operation since then. I started in Kommunalbanken in 1995 when we were a major issuer in the domestic market. Almost all our funds are now raised through MTNs. What is your favourite part of the job? My job is incredibly varied which I like. We started from scratch one year ago and have yet to see a flattening learning curve. As a new issuer the challenges are many, but it has been a highly rewarding year and great fun. I have realized that even in the world of www this is still a people business. I really enjoy getting to know the many talented people around. Who is your favourite dealer of the month? Since we started in January 2000 we have executed trades with 17 different dealers and it is difficult to choose between them. We have nine dealers on our MTN panel and have a good and close relationship with most of them. That said, some dealers stand out from the crowd and we are greatly impressed. What has been the most interesting trade you've seen in the last few months? We executed a US dollar benchmark trade earlier this week after an extensive roadshow in Asia and Japan. It was interesting to start working on investor relations in that region and extremely satisfying to conclude our efforts with a successful deal. Another trade that has impressed us is the Region of Lazio securitization of health care transfers. As the first securitization by a European sub-sovereign entity it has been the focus of much discussion regarding developments of local government financing. What do you think will be the most important trend in the next quarter? It seems that some investors are placing huge emphasis on size and liquidity, apparent in the Telecom sector with huge funding requirements and ratings under pressure. Further turbulence in the stock markets could enforce the flight to quality, which should benefit smaller triple-A issuers like Kommunalbanken. We are also concerned with the state of the Japanese economy and how that might affect investor demand and MTN flows. What annoys you most about the market? Unpredictability - it moves. Which of your competitors do you admire most and why? I have respect for a number of our competitors. We work closely with the other three Nordic local government funding agencies in Sweden, Finland and Denmark where we exchange ideas and experiences both on funding and lending - and smilingly fight for the same deal. Closer to home, we compete with a very professional player which keeps us awake and focused. In general, I think there are lots of successful issuers that we monitor and learn from. At the end of the day we try to find our individuality and build a funding strategy that reflects our credit quality, our risk profile and our investor base. If you were not an MTN dealer, what would you do? I would sail around the world, experience beautiful sunsets and get terribly lonely - so I guess I am stuck. What car do you or would you like to drive? As a true Scandinavian with small children, I drive a boring Volvo. In another life I would place an order for the new Mini or the Beetle with the flower vase. What's your favourite restaurant? I can't be in London without a visit to one of the Wagamama branches. It reminds me of my student days in London. In Oslo I can highly recommend ORO restaurant and bar, run by the winner of Bocuse d'or 99, Terje Ness.

Ricoh, the Japanese electronics company, signed a $1 billion Euro-MTN programme on March 23. Merrill Lynch is the arranger. The programme, which is unrated, is Ricoh's second MTN facility. Ricoh Finance Nederland signed a $300 million programme in 1991. It has $78.79 million outstanding off six trades and Nomura was the arranger, with Merrill Lynch as an appointed dealer. The company is one of the world's leading manufacturers of copiers and office supplies and makes other products such as digital cameras, semiconductors and recordable and re-writable CDs. The Japanese market accounts for 60% of the issuer's sales. The dealer panel comprises JP Morgan, Mizuho, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Nomura, Tokai Bank Europe, Tokyo-Mitsubishi and the arranger.

Latin issuers stayed on the sidelines this week as investors remained cautious about the situation in Argentina, despite the success of its new economy minister, Domingo Cavallo, in getting political support for his economic plans. In a marked change from the deadlock president Fernando de la Rúa has often faced when trying to pass much needed fiscal reforms, both the lower house and the senate passed a law this week giving Cavallo power for a year to implement certain kinds of tax, tariff and public sector reforms without congressional approval.

SAir Group, the troubled parent of Swiss national airline Swissair, was downgraded three notches today (Monday) by Moody’s following the release of disappointing results for full year 2000 and the announcement of an about turn in strategy.

Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS)signed a euro1 billion ($886.70 million) Euro-MTN shelf on March 21. Salomon Smith Barney is the arranger and one of the named dealers. The other dealers are ABN Amro, Daiwa SBCM Europe, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, SEB Debt Capital Markets and UBS Warburg.

Denmark The general syndication of the $100m five year multi-currency revolver for Copenhagen Airport is oversubscribed although arranger Handelsbanken Markets is waiting on responses from a couple more banks before closing the books.

Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and Morgan Stanley Dean Witter have been mandated to arrange what is believed to be the largest financing in the satellite communications sector for Société Européenne des Satellites (SES). The debt facilities back the acquisition by SES of GE Americam Communications, the satellite arm of General Electric.

Bahrain EuroWeek hears that Citibank has put in an offer to underwrite the Eu345m three year term loan for the Al-Hidd power station expansion project. So far, five other banks have also submitted proposals: Gulf International Bank, National Bank of Bahrain, International Bank of Japan, ABC Bank and National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD).

Sumitomo Bank and Standard Bank will launch next week the $500m two year term loan for Mobile Telephone Networks, South Africa’s second largest GSM network operator.

* Carl von Boehm-Bezing, one of Deutsche Bank's most senior managers is to retire on the advice of his doctors. Von Boehm-Bezing is Joe Ackermann's co-head of the corporate and investment banking division, and a member, of 11 years standing, of Deutsche's managing board. He will resign from the board at the bank's general meeting on May 17. Jürgen Fitschen, a divisional board member and a member of the corporate and investment bank executive committee has joined the board. The two will overlap to help smooth the transition, but it has not yet been decided how von Boehm-Bezing's management responsibilities will be assigned.

Dixons completed the first European exchangeable bond into an internet stock this week, and was even able to price the issue with one of the lowest bond floors of 2001. The UK electronics retailer sold a Eu260m bond exchangeable into French internet service provider (ISP) and directories business Wanadoo. The notes carry a bond floor of just 86% to 89%, well under the average for 2001 of 91%.

Müller Logistik will have the difficult task at its Eu22m-Eu26m IPO of differentiating itself from its comparables on the Neuer Markt. The logistics company, which is offering 2.45m shares at Eu9-Eu10.5, must persuade investors who are already nervous to take a chance and buy its shares. "Investors are, given the circumstances, very interested but certainly very cautious," said a banker close to the deal. Müller looks to set itself apart from competitors such as Thiel Logistik and Microlog by providing a service based more on advice and consultancy than assets and goods. "Explanation is able to replace inventory," said the banker. "It is a very lean company. They do not invest in assets."