UK

A £145m trade on Thursday evening in shares of Aldermore Group, the UK challenger bank, came after the FTSE 250 had fallen 0.8%.

This week produced an encouraging run of equity block trades, with a sprinkling of modestly sized deals on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

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

British largest off-license chain Conviviality Retail has agreed to buy drinks wholesaler Matthew Clark Holdings with funds from £80m of term loans and a £130m share placing.

Standard Chartered has hired a new syndicate banker for its London desk.

A trio of covered bond issuers offered seven year deals on Monday with Banca Popolare di Milano, Société Générale and Lloyds selling deals from a variety of jurisdictions. While each deal printed with appropriate premiums, the high level of supply has meant that investors were more discerning, resulting in slower bookbuilds.

Barclays began marketing a multi-tranche Samurai trade on Monday, as some FIG bankers claimed European banks were still baulking at the new issue premiums being offered by US visitors to the euro market.

Recent global volatility stemming from China’s stock market battles has prompted debate among credit traders about the potential impact of a US rate rise this month, and fears for the consequences should it be pushed back to a later date.

Sterling bonds are not always the most exciting market, but there is a new mini-boom going on that has no parallel in Europe.

Rating: A1/A/A+

The pay gap between men and women working in the front office of investment banks is driven more by bonuses paid than the basic rate of pay, according to Emolument data. But some banks say that they are making strides in their efforts to increase the proportion of women in leadership positions.

Daiwa Capital Markets has hired a former head of sterling credit trading from Lloyds in a bid to increase the Japanese group’s presence in the currency.