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Credit Suisse First Boston and Bank of America's deal for Flowserve, which backs the acquisition of Invensys' valve division, is expected to join the club of credits recently oversubscribed, according to bankers. The seven-year, $735 million "B" loan was launched to institutional investors on Tuesday and carries a LIBOR plus 3 1/4% spread. A banker explained the "B" backs the $535 million acquisition and refinances existing debt. It could not be ascertained if pricing will flex yet, as the credit has only just been launched, said a banker.

FleetBoston Financial and Bank of America are set to launch next Tuesday syndication of a $300 million credit for Team Health backing the $147 million acquisition of Spectrum Healthcare. The credit, which includes a $150 million "B" term loan, also refinances $110 million in existing debt led by the two relationship banks. A decision was made to finance the acquisition with bank debt, rather than bonds or equity, because of perceived investor appetite for health care in the bank market.

Société Générale is offering 1/4% for commitments to the National Basketball Association's Charlotte Hornets' $40 million term loan. Fees on the $35 million pro rata are 3/4% for $20 million and 1/2% for $10 million. The deal partially backs the proposed move to New Orleans, following a request to the NBA to relocate the franchise that is almost certain to go through at this point, said bankers.

KBC Bank has returned to the market with its $252 million Perryville Power construction loan for Mirant and Lousiana utility Cleco, and is looking for retail participants. A banker familiar with the deal said the original syndication was suspended last summer due to an issue over air permits, which have recently been received. About 15 banks are said to be looking at the loan, after 23 banks attended the meeting last week.

Magnum Hunter Resources has launched the retail round of its $275 million loan backing its merger with Prize Energy. The company has wrapped a successful bond offering and managing agent round and this is the final piece to be completed. According to a banker familiar with the situation, four banks have come in at the senior managing agent level, in addition to leads Deutsche Bank, CIBC World Markets and BNP Paribas. Pricing on the three-year borrowing-base facility is LIBOR plus 2 1/4%, but the borrowing base transaction still carries too low a spread to be of interest to non-bank players, according to the banker.

Adelphia Communications' bank debt fell this week with a couple of $2.5 million pieces trading in the 96 range following new reports that the company's off-balance sheet debt may be larger than previously believed. Early on Wednesday, dealers quoted the name in the 95 1/2 - 97 context. The company also announced that the Securities and Exchange Commission is conducting an informal inquiry into the matter. Calls to Jim Brown, company v.p of finance, were referred to a spokeswoman who did not return calls.

Caremark Rx is attempting to cut pricing on its $225 million "B" term loan by 3/4% after improving the credit profile of the company in the last year. The pharmacy-benefit management (PBM) company is back in the market with lead banker Bank of America. "We refinanced the bank facility last year leaving a "B" loan outstanding. But since then, the company has improved the credit, been upgraded to BB+ by Standard & Poor's, and so is looking to improve interest payments," explained Howard McClure, executive v.p. and cfo of Caremark.

More than $15 million of Centennial Cellular bank debt crept up to the 81 level this week despite mixed investor opinions on the name. Market players explained that the pricing on the wireless company's bank debt had been pushed down by a few dealers dumping the paper in the mid 70s almost a month ago. The name has since recovered some ground with a $25 million auction at 77 on March 22, another $15 million reported to have to moved to retail in the 78-79 context early last week and other trades reported in the 80-81 by the end of the week.

Salomon Smith Barney has hired Steve Segretta, a CDO structurer at CIBC World Markets in New York, as director in the newly merged credit derivatives structuring and trading teams and plans to hire two or three additional synthetic collateralized debt obligation structurers for its New York headquarters.

Half a dozen international private equity investors are changing the face of the region. Cashed up, driven and connected, they are at the vanguard of a new wave of buyouts that have the potential to transform many of Asia's companies – for better or worse. By Matthew Montagu-Pollock

Projects are few and far between this year in Asia, with the only significant activity in China. Joy Lee reports on the country's project financing developments, and on the financing structures favoured by the market.

Though Philippine secretary of finance Lito Camacho is internationally respected and is making good progress, he has already experienced the difficulties of political power in the Code-NGO scandal. He states his case to Matthew Montagu-Pollock.