UK

UK manufacturer Dyson is looking for at least £250m of debt, according to several market sources, in a private placement set to close in the middle of the pandemic that has largely shut public markets in Europe and the US.

HSBC’s hunt for a group chief executive has ended where it began, with the bank appointing interim boss Noel Quinn on a permanent basis.

During consultations with Gilt-edged Market Makers (GEMMs) and Gilt investors on Monday, there was a preference for the UK Debt Management Office to reopen its 1.875% 2054 Gilt in mid-May for the first syndication of its 2020/21 financial year.

Three institutional investors pulled out of a private placement for London's Heathrow airport according to market sources, amid pricing volatility due to Covid-19 and as airports take stock of how much the virus will impact their businesses.

The crash in share prices as the coronavirus pandemic has gathered pace is soon likely going to force some sellers to execute equity block trades to cover loans secured against stock, or just to access capital quickly. But these sellers are going to have to stomach heavy discounts to get the liquidity required to execute trades, as one company proved on Monday night.

Central banks are dusting off the 2008 playbook, thrusting liquidity at the banking system and hoping some of it gets through to banks' end clients. It’s better than nothing, but the coronavirus crisis one primarily of corporates — and the rescue toolkit needs updating.

Private debt funds in Europe may be the hot new thing to some in capital markets but they could be about to come of age, having never been through a serious credit downturn before. The market is under scrutiny over how it will cope with the credit ramifications of Covid-19.

Lawrence Stroll, the billionaire and Formula One racing magnate, has been instrumental in pushing ahead with UK car manufacturer Aston Martin’s capital raise, restructured on Friday, meaning the company’s turnaround plan, which includes a rights issue, is still going ahead.

Finablr’s shares have been suspended and the company has warned that it may go out of business just ten months after ts IPO.

Premier Oil’s stock surged by more than 65% on Friday after the company gave an update on its cash position following this week’s equity market slump, a positive for the banks working on its rights issue. However, the deal also hinges on a court case in Scotland.

Bankers are confident that companies up and down the ratings scale can lean on their lending groups during market volatility. But borrowers in the most stretched groups are not waiting to find out, with some clients already drawing their lines, adding backup loans, and trying to negotiate waivers on debt limits. Silas Brown, Jon Hay and Owen Sanderson report.

JP Morgan has appointed James Mazur, a former hedge fund executive, as head of private syndicate in its EMEA equity capital markets private placements business.