Silicon Valley Bank will be remembered for making the most obvious mistake in banking; ineffectively managing the risk created by a mismatch between the duration of its assets and liabilities. When rates rose, SVB was exposed, leading to a deposit run on the bank, followed by a federal backstop of deposits .
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board expanded the scope of the Australian market with another blowout new year trade that delivered both the biggest Kangaroo bond on record and the largest order book for any Australian dollar offering, beyond the Commonwealth government.
Foreign exchange traders’ initial reaction to US president Donald Trump’s capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was to buy the US dollar, briefly sending a broad-based measure of the currency to its highest level in nearly a month.
The oft-forgotten European equity-linked market has hit the ground running in the new year with a trio of new issues launching in the space of 24 hours to raise more than €1.5bn.
China high-tech listings gather pace as battle for tech supremacy heats up
The pace of large Chinese high-tech listings is accelerating, driven by the country’s strong push for self-reliance in strategically important sectors amid a technology war with the US.
Venezuela bonds trade up but complex debt restructuring now looms
Cash prices of Venezuela bonds jumped after the US captured the oil-rich Latin American state’s president Nicolas Maduro on January 3. But sovereign debt restructuring experts cautioned that US president Donald Trump’s call for US oil companies to invest in a US-run Venezuela could cap recoveries for bondholders in what will already be an extraordinarily complicated restructuring.
A contentious saga over the treatment of credit default swaps on Ireland’s Ardagh Packaging Finance has exposed longstanding flaws in these controversial derivatives contracts, legal experts say, prompting some to call for reforms to the US$11trn CDS market.
The Middle East has seen an unprecedented start to the year for bond issuance with 14 borrowers from the region tapping international markets in the first full week, raising close to US$30bn in total.
Chile, the first and largest issuer of sovereign sustainability-linked bonds, has bolstered the US$16bn market with a landmark biodiversity pure-play bond after an absence of more than two years.
Silicon Valley Bank will be remembered for making the most obvious mistake in banking; ineffectively managing the risk created by a mismatch between the duration of its assets and liabilities. When rates rose, SVB was exposed, leading to a deposit run on the bank, followed by a federal backstop of deposits .
Venezuela bonds trade up but complex debt restructuring now looms
Cash prices of Venezuela bonds jumped after the US captured the oil-rich Latin American state’s president Nicolas Maduro on January 3. But sovereign debt restructuring experts cautioned that US president Donald Trump’s call for US oil companies to invest in a US-run Venezuela could cap recoveries for bondholders in what will already be an extraordinarily complicated restructuring.
Trump’s Venezuela adventure provides further fuel for dollar bears
Foreign exchange traders’ initial reaction to US president Donald Trump’s capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was to buy the US dollar, briefly sending a broad-based measure of the currency to its highest level in nearly a month.
Investment banking fees surpassed US$137bn in 2025, the second-best year on record after a 25% surge in the second half of the year thanks to a late flurry of M&A deals and public listings, which added to bumper debt issuance throughout the year.
Nearly five years after first approaching creditors to renegotiate its debts, Ethiopia has finally reached agreement about recutting its sole outstanding Eurobond: a US$1bn 6.625% instrument that was originally meant to mature in 2024.
OpenAI faces jury trial after judge sides with Musk over 'ill-gotten gains'
OpenAI and its chief executive Sam Altman will face a jury trial in March after a California judge ruled that there was “plenty of evidence” to support claims from co-founder Elon Musk that he had been duped into making donations on the basis that the organisation would remain a non-profit.
The Middle East has seen an unprecedented start to the year for bond issuance with 14 borrowers from the region tapping international markets in the first full week, raising close to US$30bn in total.
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board expanded the scope of the Australian market with another blowout new year trade that delivered both the biggest Kangaroo bond on record and the largest order book for any Australian dollar offering, beyond the Commonwealth government.
US high-grade primary sees busiest week since 2020
The US investment-grade bond market is off to a roaring start in 2026, generating its highest weekly primary volume in close to six years as borrowers rush to lock in financing ahead of what could be a record supply year for the asset class.
Chile, the first and largest issuer of sovereign sustainability-linked bonds, has bolstered the US$16bn market with a landmark biodiversity pure-play bond after an absence of more than two years.
Trump puts single-family rental issuers on defence
US single-family rental issuers were on the back foot in the wake of US president Donald Trump seeking to ban large investors from buying more homes in an effort to address housing affordability.
The European CMBS market will get off to a quick start as Sirius Logistics 2026-1 UK was unveiled by Bank of America, Standard Chartered and Wells Fargo Securities for pricing in the coming week. Calls with the sponsor, Blackstone's last-mile logistics operator, Mileway, were available on request.
The auto sector led the first wave of asset-backed supply in 2026, amid expectations that issuance from this sector will hit a record on the back of strong consumer-borrowing trends.
Oncourse Home Solutions is reopening the whole business securitisation space in 2026 with a jumbo deal to take advantage of favourable funding conditions.
Together Financial Services said on Thursday it has enhanced its Highfield Asset Backed Securitisation 1 and Brooks Asset Backed Securitisation 2 warehouses. The maturity of the £725m HABS1 warehouse has been extended to December 2029 from December 2027.
Chile, the first and largest issuer of sovereign sustainability-linked bonds, has bolstered the US$16bn market with a landmark biodiversity pure-play bond after an absence of more than two years.
ENBD prints first 'turquoise' deal with blue and green mix
Emirates NBD has priced a US$700m five-year green bond and a US$300m three-year blue bond, which is the first public benchmark blue bond in the Middle East.
The Port of Rotterdam Authority priced what a major investor said was the first corporate bond with proceeds to be used exclusively for carbon capture and storage.
Split-rated Benin (B+/B1/BB–) is pulling together a US$500m blended finance package for sustainable public transport that includes the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank’s first loan in the West African country and also involve the International Development Association, the World Bank Group’s concessional lender for the poorest 80 countries.
ILX, the emerging markets private credit investor founded by former European Bank for Reconstruction and Development chief financial officer Manfred Schepers, has appointed Kirstine Damkjaer as chief investment officer.
China high-tech listings gather pace as battle for tech supremacy heats up
The pace of large Chinese high-tech listings is accelerating, driven by the country’s strong push for self-reliance in strategically important sectors amid a technology war with the US.
The oft-forgotten European equity-linked market has hit the ground running in the new year with a trio of new issues launching in the space of 24 hours to raise more than €1.5bn.
Aktis Oncology set a rosy tone for the year’s IPOs by raising an upsized US$317.7m from its Nasdaq IPO on Thursday evening, after securing a powerful endorsement – a US$100m anchor order from collaborative partner Eli Lilly.
Kicking off what leveraged finance bankers hope will be a busier year for acquisition financings, diagnostic and medical imaging company Hologic on Tuesday launched a US$7bn-equivalent first-lien term loan B that will part-fund the acquisition of the company by Blackstone and TPG in a deal valued at US$18.3bn.
The dual-currency term loan B backing Apax Partners' acquisition of the treasury and capital markets unit of UK software company Finastra Group launched on Tuesday with margin talk that looks to offset lender concerns around a thin equity cushion.
Syndicated lending in Europe, the Middle East and Africa totalled US$1.51trn in 2025, a 35.5% increase on the US$1.11trn raised in 2024 and the highest volume since 2007, according to LPC data.
US market raises record US$3.6trn of loans in 2025
US lenders completed more than US$3.6trn of retail loan issuance via the broadly syndicated loan market in 2025, a 12% increase from 2024 and a new record.
Syndicated lending in G3 currencies in Asia Pacific ex-Japan rose to a five-year high as stability returned after a tepid first half marked by the imposition of US tariffs.
IFR hosts a comprehensive programme of conferences, seminars and roundtables throughout the year, providing authoritative insight into the trends and outlooks for specific regions and asset classes.
All websites use cookies to improve your online experience. They were placed on your computer when you launched this website. You can change your cookie settings through your browser.
