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The use of derivatives products is on the increase in Asia despite the controversy that often surrounds them. Pauline Loong looks behind the veil of notoriety at the friendly face of these market-moving tools.

HSBC and Citibank continue their annual sparring in this year's forex and derivatives poll, with HSBC stretching its lead in FX and Citi once more ahead in derivatives. By Olivia Chow and Robert Law.

Investment bankers queue up to shake his hand, to get him smiling their way. But it is not just personal charm – which Kim Cheon-hong has in abundance – that attracts this following. Rather, it is his job as the executive director of Kamco, the Korea Asset Management Corporation, which has provided lucrative capital markets business for the domestic and international financial community over the past three years. Kamco was set up as a vehicle to resolve the country's distressed assets. Bond issuance has been its major source of funding, and Kim is the key person handing out mandates.

March saw the first instalment of a A$1 billion float, Australia's largest this year, and the country's first single purpose airport fund. Why would anyone float a fund based on aviation at a time when nobody wants to fly? Chris Wright explains.

The use of increasingly sophisticated financial instruments by Korean borrowers over the past year is just the tip of the iceberg as modified rules further encourage expansion of the market. Pauline Loong reports.

Almost one year to the day since Asiamoney interviewed Anthony Norman – the man who took on Thai Petrochemical Industries (TPI) and won – we made our way back to the offices of Effective Planners on Bangkok's Sathorn Road. Twelve months later the scene is considerably changed. Then, when the company was engaged in a bitter struggle to implement the landmark restructuring of Thailand's largest corporate debtor, the doors were code numbered and manned by dour security guards. Now, visitors are ushered in with a welcoming smile. There are other changes too. War-weary Norman is no longer running the show. In November, the respected managing director quietly stepped aside to concentrate on regional matters. If there are any surprises, it is that he lasted so long. Like Norman, the new managing director, Peter Gothard, is a veteran of Ferrier Hodgson – the Australian accounting and restructuring company that owns Effective Planners. At 32 years old, he is younger than Norman, less confrontational in appearance, more of a team player. Neatly dressed in a white shirt and tie, it's hard to imagine him taking on the might and anger of a man like Prachai Leophairatana, the founder and former chief executive of TPI. But if Gothard lacks Norman's tough exterior, he still knows what it is like to be at the rough end of Thai business.

Investors are closely watching the upcoming presidential election for signs of changes to Korea's economic reform policies. So far, there appears to be consensus among the major players not to rock the boat. Pauline Loong reports.

Korea is one of Asia's fastest growing economies – and both investors and global bankers want a piece of the action. By Pauline Loong.

Korea is one of Asia's fastest growing economies – and both investors and global bankers want a piece of the action. By Pauline Loong.

Lehman Brothers has a clear-cut strategy in the US and Europe. But its plans in Asia are much more abstract. With a history of pulling in and out of the region, there are signs that the firm is, once again, intent on building up areas of Asian business. Lehman management claims this is part of a long-term strategy, but its actions remain open to interpretation. Fiona Haddock reports.

Growing liquidity. Amenable tax reforms for investors and issuers. Increased transparency and regulation. All are unexpected features of a buoyant Russian corporate bond market, which has emerged stronger for its default-tainted1998 experience. Not surprisingly, the country's corporates are wise to the benefits of domestic fixed income, and have pushed issuance volumes to healthy levels, swelling fee earnings among local houses on the way. Guy Norton asks if this new-found optimism will be enough to feed further growth in 2002.

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