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For the first time since 1998, Tremont Advisors, the US-based investment research firm, has found that long/short equity hedge funds suffered a net loss of assets in the first quarter of 2002. While the research showed that convertible arbitrage and event-driven investment strategies remained popular with investors, the more traditional long/short strategies have suffered.

Amount: Eu1.83bn Maturity: August 31, 2007

Amount: Eu548m Maturity: August 31, 2007

Amount: Eu546m Maturity: August 31, 2007

Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and Royal Bank of Scotland received some chunky late commitments for HMV's 425m debt facility this week. Credit committees have taken a long time to assess the media company's new facility which was launched against the backdrop of HMV's unsuccessful IPO in early May. However, despite an initially slow response the commitments submitted this week were encouraging.

Arranger Lloyds Bank has invited banks to attend a meeting on Monday for the £190m refinancing of the £130m deal signed for Holmes Place in 2000. The terms and conditions of the new deal are almost identical to the original transaction. That deal was divided into a £100m five year term loan which paid 187.5bp over Libor and a £30m five year revolver. The margins are tied to a net debt to Ebitda grid.

Arrangers ING Bank and Rabobank (Hong Kong) have won the mandate for a $74m 5-1/2 year term loan for Florens Container, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cosco Pacific. Arrangers Bank of China, HSBC, Citic Ka Wah Bank and ICBC have launched a HK$3.5bn eight year facility for Western Harbour Tunnel.

Dreieck Leasing, one of the largest and oldest leasing companies in Switzerland, last month carried out a private securitisation of equipment leases that could be brought to the public market next year. Some Eu162m of leasing contracts were securitised with Dreieck's parent company, Banca del Gottardo de Lugano, and SG. SG took on Eu150m of variable funding certificates rated triple-A by Standard & Poor's through an SG sponsored conduit. Banca del Gottardo is holding the remaining notes, which are rated triple-B.

Bank of America last week (Friday) returned to its Helix programme with a trio of collateralised debt obligations totalling Eu2.9bn. Since April 2001 the bank has been a regular issuer in both the public and private markets under the Helix programme, designed to free up trading limits on its books.

Feria Valencia, Spain's oldest trade fair institution based in the region of Valencia, has launched a Eu325m debt programme based on structured finance techniques via Santander Central Hispano (SCH). As well as providing a template for European regional entities to access the capital markets, the deal is a landmark transaction for long dated euro denominated bonds. There are few precedents for the deal. In September 2001 Portugal launched a Eu126m wrapped bond to finance the privatisation of a railway - the bond has a final maturity in 2027 with a 20 year average life.

Cetelem Group, a subsidiary of BNP Paribas and the largest consumer finance company in France, this week launched its latest transaction from the MasterNoria vehicle. The market responded strongly to a recognised player and a rare product. Lead managed by BNP Paribas, the Eu320m deal backed by unsecured consumer loans is the fifth to use the MasterNoria vehicle, a master trust-like structure set up in October 1998.

UK mortgage lender Britannic Money, formerly First Active Financial, has launched a £500m securitisation backed by a mixture of owner-occupied and buy-to-let mortgages. Launch spreads on triple-A paper from the First Flexible deals have tightened with each transaction. Last Friday joint bookrunners Barclays Capital and RBS Financial Markets priced the fifth securitisation of flexible mortgages at 23bp over, 4bp tighter than last July's £500m deal, with similar average lives of 5.2-5.3 years.