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EuroWeek understands that five banks have joined the sub-underwriting phase of the debt facilities backing the buy-out of Travelodge and Little Chef. Barclays, Danske Bank, HVB and WestLB are thought to be among them. Some funds, including Duke Street Capital, have also committed to the facilities.

Amount: £18m Rating: A1

Uruguay's voluntary debt restructuring was condemned even before it had a chance to get off the ground this week, with Fitch cutting the sovereign's rating to CCC- and claiming that such an exercise would likely be tantamount to default. After months of speculation, Uruguay's economy minister, Alejandro Atchugarry, said this week that the sovereign "will seek a new profile for [its] debt through a voluntary swap" and announced Citigroup/SSB as its adviser.

Mandated arranger HSBC signed banks into the $60m 26 month Murabaha facility for Tav (Tepe-Akfen-Vie) in Canary Wharf on Wednesday. The deal was well received and oversubscribed. HSBC took a $6m chunk of the facility. Family Finans Kurumu, Kuwait Finance House and Melli Bank joined as co-arrangers. Co-managers are The Arab Investment Company, British Arab Commercial Bank, Emirates Bank International, Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt and National Bank of Pakistan. Esbank joined as a participant.

Rating: Aa3/A+ Amount: $1bn

EuroWeek hears that CIBC is providing the debt facilities of around £120m backing the buy-out of Warner Villages by US private venture capital company Austin Ventures. Vivendi Universal's cinema chain, UCG, has been the topic of buy-out speculation since early 2002.

Do you remember when we were making discreet enquiries about Citigroup's new diva and heroine, the alluring Sallie Krawcheck? As you will remember, the wonderfully fragrant Sallie, a southern belle to the tips of her Jimmy Choos, had been brought in by Sandy Weill to clean up the mess and the pong of pickled eggs left by Jack Grubman in the Salomon Smith Barney research department. Even for a gal of Krawcheck's super-abundant talents, this was never going to be an easy task, but with the aid of a surgical mask and a silver nose-peg presented by Tiffany's, she set about it with vigour.

Bankers, issuers and investors this week speculated on a 25bp cut in US interest rates at next week's FOMC meeting or at least a change to an easing bias as equity markets hit an eight year low on Wednesday. Yesterday's (Thursday's) rebound, with all markets staging a miraculous recovery, was dismissed as a dead-cat bounce. Corporate bond spreads widened in sympathy with equities and issuance fell to a bare minimum with just Eli Lilly, Hanson and Citigroup testing US appetite for credit.

Rating: AAA Amount: Eu100m (fungible with Eu800m issue launched 11/07/02)