UK

The European Parliament is following the principle of 'Do No Harm' to the bond market, as it grapples with ESMA and the European Commission over the final wording of Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II).

EBS BrokerTec, ICAP’s electronic foreign exchange and fixed income business, has added FX spot, forwards and swaps to its EBS Treasury platform as it completes the rebranding of the product from its previous name, MyTreasury.

A director of corporate real estate at Lloyds Bank resigned last week and the bank has not made plans to fill his role, according to two sources.

China’s Ministry of Finance has confirmed it will issue an offshore renminbi bond in London with the trade expected to launch soon.

Bookmaker William Hill on Friday sold £350m of unsecured bonds in a sterling high yield market increasingly convinced that the June referendum will support the UK’s European Union membership.

BP showed on Thursday that there is still life in the equity-neutral convertible bond structure, bringing a £400m deal that was oversubscribed and priced within its marketed range.

Norwegian issuer SR Boligkreditt and New Zealand borrower Westpac NZ will both take new euro deals on the road before the end of May, and the UK’s TSB has confirmed covered bonds will form part of its long term funding.

The Boston Retirement System (BRS) is suing five banks and four traders for allegedly conspiring to manipulate bid-ask spreads on SSA debt traded in the secondary market, increasing their profit at the expense of their clients.

The futures-implied probability of a US rate hike in June surged this week after hints by Federal Reserve officials.

The prospect of the UK voting to leave the European Union has become the foremost focus of fund managers and volatility traders, even as the latest poll on Brexit gave the ‘Remain’ campaign an 18 point lead over ‘Leave’ — prompting the pound to rally to its highest point against the dollar since May 3.

UK healthcare real estate investment trust (REIT) Assura has refinanced its five year revolving credit facility and increased the size from £120m to £200m.

The University of Stirling has issued its first US private placement bond at an average rate of 3.82%.