UK Sovereign

The IPO of luxury accessories firm Jimmy Choo is likely to be priced at the bottom of its price range, bankers said on Wednesday, but the deal may still be hailed as a now rare success in weakening IPO markets.

Entu, which sells products to make houses more efficient, completed an IPO on London's AIM on Thursday.

The head of Nomura's EMEA global finance division will leave the bank, to be replaced by HSBC's Simon Deeny and head of ECM Ken Brown.

Society of Lloyd’s wrested investors' attention away from the geopolitical woes and equity market travails on Wednesday, mandating banks for a roadshow ahead of what would be its first capital markets appearance in more than seven years.

UK challenger bank Aldermore cancelled its IPO that it was set to price on Wednesday as equity markets continued to weaken. But bankers close to peer Virgin Money, which is due to start bookbuilding this week, are confident the deal will continue.

The UK looks to have laid down a serious marker for other sovereigns wishing to follow it into the offshore renminbi market, with the book on its debut deal over twice subscribed and guidance well inside initial price thoughts as of Tuesday morning London time.

Jimmy Choo, the UK luxury shoes and bags company, narrowed pricing on its £136m IPO on Monday, opting for a conservative price range in light of tumbling markets and fears about IPOs.

The UK government opened books for its debut renminbi-denominated bonds on October 14. The three year deal was first offered with price guidance in the area of 2.9%, before being cut to 2.75% area in the late afternoon Hong Kong time.

The UK government's landmark RMB bond is grabbing attention this week, but financial market participants are already looking at the next steps, with panda and green bonds seen as possible next areas of focus for Chinese capital account liberalisation, according to HSBC.

Assura, the UK property company that specialises in doctors' surgeries, has raised £180m by selling new shares, in a deal completed on Friday.

The UK is gearing up to become the first government, apart from China, to sell a renminbi bond, in a deal that could come as soon as next week and be worth Rmb2bn.

The UK on Thursday launched its much-heralded debut renminbi denominated bond, the first ever from a foreign sovereign. The deal is expected to mark a big increase in profile for the Chinese currency among international issuers and investors.