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Rumble in the ECM jungle: An explosion in overnight risk trades in the US has broken the cosy cartel that saw US ECM teams for years earn huge fees. For applying the lessons from its European experience and aggressively promoting the profit-share approach to blocks – for the benefit of clients – Citigroup is IFR’s North America Equity House of the Year.
Cleaning up: The sale of US$20.7bn worth of American International Group stock by the US Treasury Department in September was the largest common stock follow-on in US history and the highest profile equity deal of the year. For returning money to taxpayers and restoring the insurer’s institutional shareholder base, the offering is IFR’s North America Equity Issue of the Year.
Innovate, dominate: League tables are just one measure of a bank’s performance, but retaining the number one position in EMEA equities for three consecutive years does not happen by accident. For maintaining a leadership position while reducing risk and improving profitability, Goldman Sachs is IFR’s EMEA Equity House of the Year.
Making the right call: After six months without a major IPO in Europe, cable operator Ziggo stormed to market with an increased float, top of the range pricing and positive aftermarket. For perfect co-ordination between banks, private equity – and even an independent adviser – Ziggo’s €924.9m IPO is IFR’s EMEA Equity Issue of the Year.
Intellectual muscle: In a tricky year for Asia-Pacific’s equity markets, one bank mastered the block business and succeeded with primary offerings while its rivals stayed on the sidelines. For its impressive range of innovative solutions and an enviable appetite for risk, UBS is IFR’s Asia-Pacific Equity House of the Year.
Creative thinking: A dismal IPO market derailed many plans to raise equity capital over the past year, but one Hong Kong spin-off proved that companies could still meet their objectives in a bleak market. For its innovative solution, Swire Properties’ HK$5bn accelerated bookbuild is IFR’s Asia-Pacific Equity Issue of the Year.
Priced to sell: Grupo Financiero Santander Mexico attracted US$22bn in demand for its US$4.1bn deal. It was the largest equity transaction in the country’s history and the third-largest IPO in the world in 2012, and was more than five times subscribed. By showing that a stellar story can sell, even in weak markets, it is IFR’s Latin America Equity Issue of the Year.
It has been a long road back for RBS’s investment banking unit from the day that the British government stepped in to prop up the bank with a £20bn cash injection. The story of its partial recovery involves two separate restructurings, the slashing of £700bn from its assets, a surprising (and temporary) surge in profits and a series of ruthless decisions.
The process of restructuring Greece’s sovereign debt was, for the banking professionals involved, one of the most complicated they had ever experienced. The fact that it was accomplished in nine months was, perhaps, a minor miracle. Here, IFR examines how the deal made it over the line.
Global investment banking fees are expected to drop 10% in 2012. But that number flatters the reality experienced by a number of market participants. To many, the year felt a lot worse than that.
The JOBS Act has made the IPO process for smaller companies in the US quicker, cheaper and easier. That may have boosted listings – and possibly even employment (and not just among bankers). But has it taken away the time investors need to make informed decisions?
New capital and liquidity requirements under Basel III are likely to have all kinds of consequences – including a slowdown in lending across the spectrum. Banks must find new ways of drumming up capital and cleaning up their balance sheets.
A string of insider-trading scandals in recent years has tarnished the reputation of Japan’s banking community and prompted the country’s Financial Services Agency to review regulations on insider information. Observers hope the efforts will clean up the industry and restore faith in Japanese banks.
It is not easy to kill the loan markets. But with a sharp drop in volumes, the European syndications market certainly looked close to death in 2012. Nevertheless, bankers are confident that syndications will rebound strongly in the year ahead.
Users of derivatives, both in the banking industry and the wider world, have spent months gearing up for the profound changes in regulations that 2013 will bring. But as implementation of the changes comes ever closer, room for considerable confusion remains.
Argentina has imposed capital controls, seized assets, nationalised companies – and shows little sign of yielding in a bitter and long-running legal battle with its so-called holdout creditors. Antagonising the markets is no way to attract the long-term investment the country needs, which raises the question: how much longer can this go on?
From the ECB’s cheap money to the wildly different price expectations of buyers and sellers, there are plenty of reasons why Europe’s banks are not deleveraging quickly enough. Will they pick up the pace in 2013?
A lot of water has passed under the bridge since the Asian financial crisis 15 years ago, and although there is still plenty of work to be done, the region has made spectacular progress. The current turmoil in Europe has left Asia looking like a safe bet.