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The Singapore domestic debt market took another bold step this week with the successful launch of the largest domestic bond offering by Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel). The company took advantage of the deepening local bond market and low interest rates to launch a S$1bn five year transaction - S$400m larger than the previous deal. The reception for the deal, which will support the corporate's regional expansion and acquisition plans, was largely complimentary, although some bankers questioned the aggressive pricing.

A spate of Japanese issues emerged this week but the market responded by pushing the shares well below the levels at which they were trading when the deals were announced. Nikko Salomon Smith is sole bookrunner for the sale of 13m shares plus a 2m share greenshoe for Konami, which is seeking new capital for its acquisition of a chain of fitness centres. The stock closed at ¥4,820 yesterday (Thursday), down 19% from last Friday's close of ¥5,950. At ¥4,820, the deal is worth ¥72bn ($620m) including the greenshoe.

Merrill Lynch completed a $604.5m convertible preference share issue into the US 144A market in the early hours of Thursday morning, Australia time, for News America Inc. Merrill Lynch was sole lead manager for its in-house US convertible product, LYONS. These are liquid yield option notes and have a standard maturity of 20 years, with investor puts at the end of five, 10 and 15 years. The five year yield to put is 3.5%. There is call protection up to the end of five years. The notes are zero coupon and carry a conversion premium of 25% to the last trade of preferred stock in the US market of $32.90, implying a conversion price of $41.13.

Australia Allco Finance's newly formed subsidiary Record Investments has raised $190m from its float of 100m shares. The shares are to be paid for in two instalments. Investors will pay a first instalment of $1 per share and a second, 12 months later, of 90¢. The pricing of the second instalment was determined by an institutional bookbuild, which closed last Friday oversubscribed and had a range of 90¢ and $1.10.

Goldman Sachs and Nikko Salomon Smith Barney this week exercised the greenshoe option and placed an extra 60,000 new NTT DoCoMo shares to add to the 400,000 shares that were sold earlier this month. This brings the total issue size to ¥950bn, equivalent to more than $8.2bn. Bankers and investors expressed surprise that the lead banks exercised the greenshoe when the market price was below the issue price, rather than stabilising the stock in the market.

Arrangers Barclays Capital and JP Morgan have launched the £900m credit facility for Hanson plc.

South Africa The $150m term loan for RMB International (Dublin) was signed this week. The deal was 175% subscribed and increased from $100m to $150m. The mandated arranger was Mizuho Financial Group and arrangers were Bayerische Landesbank, HypoVereinsbank, KBC Bank, Crédit Agricole Indosuez and Standard Chartered.

David Rimmer, head of syndications at ABC International Bank, is to retire at the end of this month, having worked in the City for 34 years.

The republic of Argentina this week chipped away at its yearly funding requirements with a $250m increase to the $500m 30 year bond it launched in January. The add-on, led by Banco Galicia, was priced to yield 12.44%, or 678bp over Treasuries, at a wider yield and spread than the original, which was launched at a spread of 656bp. The wider spread on the add-on largely reflected the weaker Latin market this week.

Hong Kong HSBC has won the mandate to arrange a $100m five year transferable term loan/floating rate note facility for Cosco (Hong Kong) Group.

New York City - Tuesday February 20, 12.00pm. A huge mushroom shaped cloud hangs over 11, Madison Avenue, the beleaguered house of Credit Suisse First Boston. Has someone dropped a nasty bomb on our CSFB friends? The ambulance crews representing New York's finest tell us there may be many casualties on the executive floor. President George W Bush is said to be watching the situation with some concern.

Bank of Scotland has bolstered its structured finance business in continental Europe with additions to its Paris and Frankfurt teams.