Switzerland

Vitol held a bank meeting last week to refinance its flagship loans. The Swiss-headquartered firm will not increase the loan from $7.5bn, according to bankers.

The Euromoney Smaller European Companies Index Series currently comprises 1350 companies across 16 European countries.

Rarity value ensured strong demand for Bank of Nova Scotia’s return to the Swiss franc market in a week that also saw local insurer Helvetia continue its series of successful hybrid placements.

Middle market investment bank Baird has hired a head of investment banking for Germany, Austria and Switzerland, a new role at the firm.

Oil trader Vitol has mandated five banks to lead its $7.5bn refinancing and will launch the deal imminently, according to a banker on the deal.

Symetis, a Swiss company that makes artificial heart valves, began investor education on Tuesday for an IPO of up to Sfr80m on SIX Swiss Exchange.

Swiss-based commodities firm ECOM Agroindustrial, which specialises in supplying coffee, cotton and cocoa, has mandated banks to arrange its $450m one year refinancing.

Swiss-headquartered oil trader Vitol is in talks with banks to refinance credit facilities of up to $7.5bn, according to a banker on the deal, as commodity prices hit record lows.

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UBS has taken over $7.5bn of orders for its latest AT1 offering, an impressive feat given the trade was Reg S only and was executed on the last Friday of July.

Zurich-based Swiss Reinsurance Company (Swiss Re) received the first quota in the RMB qualified foreign institutional investors (RQFII) programme among Swiss asset managers on July 29, according to the latest data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (Safe).

European banks are being urged to use a wide open dollar market before the US Federal Reserve hikes rates later this year, with Royal Bank of Scotland and UBS already lining up dollar additional tier one trades, writes Tom Porter.