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Pirate Capital, the hedge fund founded by ex-Goldman Sachs distressed debt honcho Thomas Hudson, has hired Steven Lefkowitz as an investment analyst from PricewaterhouseCoopers. "The two Jolly Roger funds are now almost at $35 million and at every $50 million [Pirate] will hire an analyst," said Andrew Stotland, director of sales and marketing for the Greenwich, Conn.-based firm. Lefkowitz will cover the distressed debt funds, reporting to Hudson, Stotland said. He joins a four-person team At PwC, Lefkowitz worked in both the business assurance group and the transaction support services team.

The debt funds group of RBC Capital Partners, led by Daniel Smith, is marketing the firm's latest collateralized loan obligation, the $377 million Foxe Basin CLO. Citigroup is the lead underwriter for the deal, which will comprise primarily syndicated loans. Details on the timing of the notes that will back the CLO or how much of the collateral has been acquired already were not available.

Superior TeleCom filed its plan of reorganization last week allowing for about $890 million of bank debt claims. Under the reorganization plan lenders, will receive a package that includes 100% of the new common stock, 100% of new $145 million senior notes and 100% of the new subsidiary preferred stock. Also, lenders will receive $58.1 million of the debtors' federal tax return, according to the plan of reorganization. The levels for the bank debt paper, however, did not budge from the deeply distressed 33-35 range, according to a dealer. No trades could be confirmed. A hearing in bankruptcy court is scheduled for September 2 to consider approval of the disclosure statement. A spokesman for the company declined to comment.

Worldspan has completed a debut "B" loan in conjunction with a larger debt package, backing the company's acquisition by a consortium of private equity sponsors under the name Travel Transaction Processing Corp. The debt package includes a $125 million "B" loan, a $50 million revolver and $280 million of notes. Worldspan had originally come to market looking for a $100 million "B" piece, but increased the tranche after finding strong reception among loan market investors, explained Dale Messick, Worldspan senior v.p. and cfo. "We were very fortunate. We had a good story to tell," he said.

Wealthy families have worries too – most specifically protecting their children from the effects of their hard-earned riches, discovers Fiona Haddock.

The super rich are well-educated and well-informed. And they demand nothing less from their private bankers, says Pauline Loong.

Foreign banks are finding themselves out in the cold when it comes to providing project finance for the country's big power, petrochemical and infrastructure deals. By Dominic Jones

The good old glory days were back – briefly

Asia's wealthy patriarchs have yet to embrace the formal management of family wealth. However, their children and grandchildren are starting to recognize the value of the family office product offered by private banks. By Fiona Haddock.

The foreign exchange industry is enjoying a quiet boom as investors turn to currency in the search for elusive yield. Nick Ferguson reports.

Amid the euphoria of the dotcom boom, many private bankers stood their ground, believing the internet would not radically change a business that is, by its very nature, highly personalized. They were right, says Fiona Haddock.

With interest rates falling through the floor, miserly bond yields and a daunting equity market, many investors are attracted by structured notes that offer the promise of bucking the market, says Nick Ferguson.