UK

A sell-off in global equities at the beginning of last week, in response to the Delta-variant-fueled rise in Covid-19 cases, was largely erased in the following days. But the episode offered a glimpse of the disquiet in the market, and a hint as to the likely reaction if the pandemic were to take a course that put the brakes on economic growth.

JP Morgan has topped up its expertise in shareholder activism in EMEA with the appointment of Darren Novak, a veteran of the discipline who previously worked at UBS, as head of shareholder engagement and M&A capital markets (SEAMAC) for the region.

Ascential, the UK media and events company, has completed a £154m capital raising to strengthen its balance sheet so that it can take advantage of new M&A opportunities.

Fixed income investor BlueBay Asset Management has added to its environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment team in London with an external hire and a move from within.

RBC Capital Markets has hired three women to its European global equity sales business at director level in London and Frankfurt.

The People & Markets section of GlobalCapital could almost have been called the Barclays section this week, given the number of stories that involved the bank. What has been going on?

The Bank of England said this week that lenders with £15bn-£25bn in assets should still be subject to the minimum requirements for own funds and eligible liabilities (MREL), despite calls from the industry to raise the threshold. The Old Lady will, however, give new and growing firms longer to comply with their targets.

In 2016, JP Morgan launched a service to help its corporate clients fill board positions with directors well versed in corporate governance. Now, as board composition comes under ever greater scrutiny, the bank is expanding the offering into EMEA.

The UK government has announced its intention to dispose of some of its remaining 54.7% stake in NatWest, formerly Royal Bank of Scotland, through a pre-arranged trading plan which will see the government sell up to a 15% stake in the bank.

Barclays has elevated Jean Francois (JF) Astier and John Miller to co-heads of investment banking as part of a raft of promotions in New York that also include the appointments of Kristin Roth DeClark and Taylor Wright as global co-heads of capital markets.

Bridgepoint Group, the UK private equity firm, has seen its stock rocket on its first day after pricing a £907m IPO on the London Stock Exchange.

Bluefield Solar Income Fund, the London-listed investment trust focused on renewable energy assets, has tapped equity investors for £105.1m to repay debt and finance the acquisition of its first wind turbines.