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EuroWeek understands that the credit facility backing DB Investments' $17.6bn bid for De Beers, the world's largest diamond producer, is likely to carry extremely attractive terms and that the margins on offer will be much higher than the levels seen on previous facilities for De Beers and related companies. UBS Warburg, as bookrunner, and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein have jointly underwritten $5.3bn of senior debt, in three tranches, that will finance the DB Investments consortium's plan to simplify the share structure of De Beers by buying out minority shareholders and nullify complex cross-shareholdings.

DePfa broke new ground this week by using a pot system on its latest Pfandbrief issue - a Eu3.5bn global that was priced yesterday (Thursday). It is the first time a pot structure has been used in the Pfandbrief market. The 10 year global, which was led by Commerzbank, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, was priced at 51bp over the Bund, equivalent to Euribor less 3bp.

Just when telecoms companies thought things could not get any worse, this week they did.

Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein has appointed Nick Morgan from JP Morgan to be head of ABS syndicate. Morgan is one of the most experienced asset backed syndicate officials in Europe, and his hiring is a key step in Dresdner's push to build a strong securitisation franchise.

Croatia Bank Austria (bookrunner) HypoVereinsbank, Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank (bookrunner), JP Morgan (bookrunner) and RZB have closed the Eu100m loan for Hrvatska Eletroprivreda (HEP). The deal was oversubscribed after 24 banks joined and the borrower is considering an increase.

Otmar Issing reiterated the European Central Bank’s (ECB) commitment to price stability in the medium term today, highlighting the need for continued wage moderation and the reduction of tax burdens and expenditure in euro area states.

El Paso Corporation, the world’s largest diversified natural gas company, has mandated ABN Amro and HypoVereinsbank for its inaugural euro bond, a Eu500m-Eu750m five or seven year transaction. The company will launch its debut after a pan-European roadshow beginning next Monday, February 26.

Brazil * Banco Bradesco (Cayman)

The Republic of Turkey launched a Eu250m tap yesterday (Thursday) though ABN Amro and Credit Suisse First Boston of its Eu500m 8.25% 2004, first launched only two weeks earlier via the same lead managers. The deal ends speculation as to whether the republic would await the expected tightening of its dollar curve in response to the continued successful implementation of the IMF programme, and launch a much larger dollar denominated offering.

CSFB, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and SG have won the mandate to arrange a Eu600m facility for diversified natural resources group Xstrata to finance its acquisition of Spanish company Asturian de Zinc. All three banks are bookrunners and Dresdner is facility agent.

A European Union directive to be drafted soon will mean that fungible trades cannot be reopened without the issuer paying withholding tax. As a result of the forthcoming directive, issuers are rushing to increase and settle fungible trades before March 1 this year - the cut-off date to avoid paying withholding tax. Bas Snijders, director of funding at SNS Bank, says: "It's difficult to say what effect this will have on the market. It will be impossible to increase fungible bonds." SNS Bank Nederland reopened two of its fungible bonds this week. The original euro700 million ($642.53 million) and euro800 million deals were each increased to euro1 billion. The former was lead-managed by HSBC and Merrill Lynch, while Barclays Capital and BNP Paribas lead managed the latter. By increasing the bonds now, SNS will avoid paying withholding tax. Snijders says: "We accommodated strong institutional and retail demand for both issues, but it will not actually save us money at this stage." The trades will be settled two days before March 1.

* Banque PSA Finance Rating: A3/A-