So here’s a funny thing. The one asset class that the great and good of the global economy seems to be worried about – leveraged loans – is just about the only one that has made money for investors in 2018. Corporate bonds? In the red. EM bonds? In the red. Equities? In the red. Financials? In the red. You name it, investors have lost money on average in nearly all global markets. The difference, of course, is that loans are floating rate and offer some protection against rising rates. Hence the rush to get exposure (whether directly or via...Read more
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JP Morgan dominates investment banking in a way no other institution has in the modern era. Whatever the measure – wallet share, market share, revenue, profits, share price performance, or sheer presence – JP Morgan is the answer. For the second year running, it is IFR’s Bank of the Year.
Guerrilla style: While other banks have struggled to hold on to their market share as issuance has fallen, HSBC stood out for its ability to generate momentum across the international bond markets. It is IFR’s Bond House, SSAR Bond House, Covered Bond House and Asia Bond House of the Year.
Hut! Hut! Hut!
Goldman Sachs was on the offense as it charged down the opposition to reclaim lost ground. For leading bold deals, operating across borders and reacting to tougher markets, Goldman Sachs is IFR’s Equity House, Asia-Pacific Equity House, North America Equity House and Latin America Equity House of the Year.
Hut! Hut! Hut!
Goldman Sachs was on the offense as it charged down the opposition to reclaim lost ground. For leading bold deals, operating across borders and reacting to tougher markets, Goldman Sachs is IFR’s Equity House, Asia...
Banking on intellectual capital
Goldman Sachs’ expertise in acquisition and leveraged financing made it the go-to partner for companies of all sizes and credit ratings in transformative or regular deals. For living up to its clients’ trust, the bank is IFR’s Loan House and Americas Loan House of the Year.
Out of the blocks
A stellar year for Citigroup in all three developing regions has seen it dominate EM primary markets in 2018. The US bank got clients into the market early, which has proven crucial in a year of volatility. Citigroup is IFR’s Emerging Markets Bond House, Emerging EMEA Bond House and Latin America Bond House of the Year.
Fine adjustments
During a busy year for major cross-border M&A deals, Rothschild shone as a flexible adviser on both the buy and sell sides. It also grew its capital markets advisory effort from an already dominant position by focusing on every variable in a challenging market. Rothschild is both IFR’s M&A Adviser and Capital Markets Adviser of the Year.
Global reach
As the end of cheap money pushes the restructuring market into a new cycle, one firm rode the crest of the burgeoning wave of global restructuring negotiations in 2018 as the geographical growth of its practice in the lean years bore impressive fruit. Houlihan Lokey is IFR’s Restructuring Adviser of the Year.
In a year marked by mammoth fintech fundraisings, M&A among US regional banks, bumper insurance deals and the never-ending struggle of European banks, one bank took a raft of advisory roles while continuing to provide much of the routine plumbing that financial firms need for their daily chores. For those reasons, Citigroup is IFR’s Bank of the Year for Financial Institutions.
For its commitment to public-sector clients through good times and bad, and for its reputation as the go-to bank for sovereigns in need of financing and advice, HSBC is IFR’s Bank of the Year for Governments.
Family fortunes
With private equity and strategic investors fast growing in importance, Goldman Sachs has shown its ability to adapt and innovate to serve its clients. For its never-ending innovation, breadth of expertise and commitment to the industry, Goldman Sachs is IFR’s Bank of the Year for Financial Sponsors.
A decade on from the demise of Lehman Brothers – and with a new generation of leaders at the helm – the banking sector has reached a turning point. Legacy issues from the crisis have faded in intensity and, while some potentially formidable challenges lie on the horizon, the industry narrative has at last shifted to thinking about the future.
Only a small number of European banks have the firepower and geographic reach to compete with rampant US rivals. The rest must either focus on pockets of excellence or merge.
Over the decades, Japanese banks have been criticised, fairly or unfairly, as having a boom-bust approach to international business. How do the international ambitions of Japan’s major financial groups stack up today amid ongoing monetary stimulus at home and a challenging environment overseas? Is it different this time?
With the US Federal Reserve shrinking its balance sheet and the ECB emerging from quantitative easing, the bond market is likely to present opportunities in corporate debt.
The barriers around China’s capital markets are coming down, just as politicians threaten to escalate Sino-US tensions into an all-out trade war.
2018 has been an exciting year for Green finance. It may not have been a record-breaking year for issuance, but the product has conquered new markets such as Schuldschein and commercial paper.
