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INVESTORS enjoyed an extra helping of yield in the subordinated bank debt market this week, as triple-B rated transactions came into vogue. Bank of Scotland, Fuji Finance and Standard Chartered all raised deals that were rated in the triple-B area. Fuji Finance raised $1bn of upper tier 2 capital, through a Euromarket offering led by Morgan Stanley. This year, only top-rated borrowers such as the European Investment Bank have tapped the Euromarkets for bank capital raisings of a similar size.

Bankers were talking this week about the possibility of another loan for United Pan-European Communications (UPC). The Dutch cable firm has completed its acquisition of SGS Broadcasting for a $2.8bn cash and stock deal. The target is based in Luxembourg and is already 18 percent owned by the borrower. UPC is to pay $85.14 per share for the stock it does not own.

Market report: Compiled by Jim Webber,

The runaway syndication of the £3.95bn acquisition financing for Lafarge attracted critical comments this week as bankers found their commitments heavily scaled back. Lafarge has made a £3.4bn hostile cash bid for Blue Circle of the UK. Around 35 banks joined, taking the deal into a triple oversubscription. It raised about £13bn, making general syndication very unlikely. Co-arrangers may be cut back to around £98m, described by one banker as "peanuts".

THE REPUBLIC of Colombia took advantage of bullish market conditions for Latin American issuers last Friday (March 3) to launch a $250m tap of its $500m 11.75% 20 year global bond. Lead managers Chase Manhattan and Goldman Sachs executed the reopening on a bought deal basis, employing the tactic of a variable price re-offer to protect themselves against the threat of renewed market volatility.

THE CONVERTIBLE market sprang back to life this week with deals from Standard Chartered and Kamps, though bankers said the revival was more through coincidence than any change in market conditions. A number of issues such as Colt Telecom and Banco Popolare di Lodi also used the increasingly popular tactic of concurrent equity and convertible offerings. "We have not seen much convertible issuance this year," said a banker. "The deals this week are coincidence. There were no particular factors which unlocked the market."