United States

J2 Acquisition Ltd, a blank cheque company set up by former Jarden Corp chairman Martin Franklin, has signed a multi-billion dollar acquisition deal, almost two years on from its $1.25bn IPO on the London Stock Exchange.

ING sold a dollar-denominated additional tier one (AT1) this week, adding an influx of supply in the asset class in recent weeks. It will have the option to redeem its new bonds twice a year after the first call date, instead of the usual five years in all of its outstanding bonds.

Compared with last year, employees at BNP Paribas and Société Générale are more disapproving of their chief executives and less optimistic on the outlook for their firms over the next six months, according to analysis carried out by UBS.

London football club Tottenham Hotspur FC has sold £525m of US private placements, according to sources familiar with the situation, to pay off bank loans which funded the construction of its new stadium.

In this round-up, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce indicated that it might hold off tariff retaliation, the country announced the establishment of six new free trade zones (FTZs) and the People’s Bank of China has asked banks to price loans based on the new loan prime rate (LPR) mechanism immediately.

European and US banks are facing pressure to become more diverse, for reasons of business and ethics. One senior investment banker at UniCredit, which has implemented a far-reaching initiative in the area, said that the logic is clear.

Europe’s corporate bond market has made a remarkably strong start to the autumn issuing season, with €14bn of euro and sterling issuance in the first two open days for issuance (Tuesday and Wednesday) and another €1.5bn on Thursday.

US corporate bond desks are braced for the busiest month of the year when September supply kicks off after the Labor Day holiday on September 2, but negative rates in Europe have raised the prospect of US companies shunning the dollar market.

Lenders unconcerned as recession portents mount — Booking Holdings gets global group for revolver — Pemberton raises €3.2bn more for Europe’s mid-market — Eurotorg re-enters rouble debt market

After a bruising 12 months, Germany’s oldest bank Berenberg remains committed to a patient development of its corporate finance business, Dave Mortlock, global head of investment banking, tells David Rothnie.

UBS replaces EMEA president — Lloyds loses PP agent — Deutsche Bank reorganises treasury team

The onshore renminbi plunged to 7.17 against the dollar by noon on Thursday from the previous week’s close at 7.07. While much of the loss was a result of a spike in tensions between the US and China, analysts and bankers are also blaming the mainland’s looser FX intervention policies and growing distrust of US president Donald Trump’s comments. Rebecca Feng reports.