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Kensington Mortgage Group, the UK lender of non-conforming mortgages, this week launched its largest securitisation to date: a £380m offering denominated in dollars and sterling. Lead managed by Barclays Capital (books), Bear Stearns, Morgan Stanley, NIB Capital and WestLB, the deal was unusual in that its senior piece, denominated in dollars, was sold to US money market funds under rule 2a7 of the Investment Company Act.

The asset securitisation and principal finance division of WestLB this week provided financial backing for the management buyout of a Scottish whisky distillery. It now intends to refinance the deal using securitisation in around three months' time. The senior management of JBB (Greater Europe), which was a wholly owned subsidiary of Jim Beam Brands Worldwide Inc, part of Fortune Brands Inc, paid £200m for the business.

Structured finance specialists this week chafed at the lack of new information about the UK government's plans for Railtrack, the railway infrastructure company it took into administration on October 7. But for participants in the ABS market, unlike share and bondholders, the winding-up of Railtrack is also an opportunity, since the outcome will almost certainly be some form of structured financing.

Tenovis GmbH & Co KG, a leading provider of business communication solutions in Germany, is preparing to launch the first rated German term securitisation to use a secured loan structure. Tenovis supplies office telephone systems and provides servicing and maintenance under contract. The company was created in 2000 when Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co acquired the private network division from Bosch Telekom.

As the South African reserve bank introduces measures designed to smooth the path of securitisation in the country, a number of companies are starting to line up deals. Plans are being put in place that could result in the launch of the first commercial mortgage backed securitisation and the first securitisation to be backed by residential mortgages.

* Credit Suisse First Boston has released price details for a Eu495m securitisation backed by commercial and industrial leases originated by SBS Leasing a division of Banca Lombarda. Lombarda Lease Finance is expected to offer a Eu440m triple-A piece at 35bp over Euribor, rated by Fitch and Moody's with a 2.3 year average life.

Robert Rossman, head of interest-rate derivatives marketing at Credit Suisse First Boston in New York, left the firm abruptly on Tuesday, according to a headhunter. Rossman joined CSFB earlier this year from J.P. Morgan where he was head of swaps marketing for the Americas.

Charter Communications' bank debt traded up this week to 97 3/8 from a previous level of 95 3/4. Dealers reported about $10 million changed hands. Buyers and sellers could not be determined. The credit recently notched down on Adelphia Communications' new deal flooding the market with more cable paper. Dealers remain optimistic on cable names, but say where anything lands remains a mystery in current market conditions. "Just because $2.5 million of Charter traded at 96 doesn't mean the market was down; it just means one person wanted to sell," a dealer said, explaining why market fluctuations occur. "If I were to buy $10 million of Charter, it would push [levels] back up." Charter is a cable company based in St. Louis, Mo.

First Union is wrapping up a $175 million revolver for Danville, Va.-based Dimon, and is on the road as lead arranger with a $175 million note offering for the leaf tobacco merchant. Ritchie Bond, senior v.p., treasurer, commenting through a company official, said refinancing portions of the current debt with additional long-term debt improves capital structure flexibility while likely increasing the effective cost of borrowing in at least the short term. First Union led the last revolver and Deutsche Bank is a lead manager on the bond deal. Closing of both the bond and credit facility is expected at the end of the week. The company official declined to comment on pricing. Pricing on the last $250 million revolver arranged in June 2000, is LIBOR plus 3 1/4%, according to Capital DATA Loanware.

It is still early days on Exopack's $110 million credit - launched by BNP Paribas, CIT Group and Heller Financial last week -- but bankers suggest the asset-based deal will be a relatively safe bet right now. The credit includes a $60 million revolver, a $30 million term loan "A" and a $20 million capital expenditure facility. There is strong collateral and asset coverage, which is what lenders are looking for right now, bankers said. Pricing on the pro rata is LIBOR plus 3% based off a grid, noted a banker.

Triad Hospitals' bank debt traded at 100 7/8 early this week with dealers attributing its resiliency to being a hospital credit. "It's defensive. If the world were to blow up, you'd still need it," a trader said. Triad has stayed in the 101 range since April, when it started to get a boost by resurgence in the health care industry. The Dallas-based company owns and operates 50 acute care hospitals and 14 ambulatory surgery centers primarily in small-sized cities in 17 countries. Calls to Burke Whitman, cfo, were referred to Pat Ball, v.p. of marketing, who declined to comment.

Hayes Lemmerz' bank debt traded down to the 75 range, a six point drop in a week, following a conference call by the company. Wyndham International's "B" paper is trading around 80. Dealers reported better occupancy rates and recovering optimism on some hotel credits. Wyndham, which had traded in the high 99 range before Sept. 11, dropped to the low 80s shortly after the attack. In par news, Charter Communications' bank debt traded up last week to 97 3/8 from a previous level of 95 3/4. Triad Hospitals' paper is trading at 100 3/8, and its strength is attributed to a defensive health care sector. Dealers reported about $10 million changed hands. Nextel Communications' paper is bid at 85, but no trades have been reported.