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The sponsor’s role in the petrochemical complex funding heralds a new role for private capital in the country

My crystal ball has not been working perfectly lately. But based on information provided by clients, banks and the market in general, it is possible to make some predictions of how capital and financial markets will perform in 2013.

Banji Adenusi As debt securities issued by governments, government agencies, and corporations, bonds are an external source of funding for the expansion of an issuer's business (as in the case of corporate bonds), or for the development of infrastructure projects. In recent times, the primary market for corporate bonds in Nigeria has witnessed tremendous growth, as the number of corporate bonds listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange has risen to a respectable 18 as of January 2013. While the issuance of government bonds and corporate bonds is regulated by the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the incidence of covered bonds is altogether a different proposition, as applicable legislation in this regard is non-existent. The United States Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation describes covered bonds as "general, non-deposit obligation bonds of the issuing bank secured by a pledge of loans that remain on the bank's balance sheet". Essentially, the defining feature of covered bonds is the duality of protection offered to investors, namely: (a) liability of issuer (typically a financial institution) for repayment; and (b) the special pool of collateral, also known as cover pool, on which investors have a preferential claim in the event of the issuer's insolvency. Typically, these collaterals are by way of high-grade mortgages or loans to the public sector or shipping loans. When contrasted with asset-backed securities (ABS), the cover pool becomes credit enhancement leverage, as they are more dynamic in the sense that assets can be added or replaced in the pool over time, especially where the value of these assets diminish or an early repayment has occurred. In addition, the credit risk stays with the issuer, as the borrower continues to absorb the risk of default and prepayment risk of the pool; much unlike ABS where the issuer does not absorb the risk of default beyond the agreed credit support and risk of prepayment is usually transferred to the investor. Herein lies the major difference between covered bonds and securitisation in general.

Regulators in the Asia-Pacific have called for closer jurisdictional cooperation to protect emerging markets from onerous extraterritorial regulations.

US banks should brace themselves for stronger competition enforcement throughout President Obama's second term, a former Department of Justice (DoJ) antitrust official has warned.

What awaits hybrid bond investors in 2014

The law on the Regulation of Fiduciaries, Administration Businesses and Company Directors, which transposes the provisions of Directive 2005/60/EC into national law, has been enacted by the Parliament of Cyprus. It applies to persons and companies providing relevant fiduciary and other corporate services relating to the administration or management of trusts and companies in or from Cyprus, including directorship and secretarial services provided by a legal person, services such as holding shares in a nominee or trustee capacity, provision of a registered office, services related to opening and operating bank accounts and the ownership of financial assets on behalf of third parties.

A Greek company has issued high-yield bonds without exposing investors to a Grexit or broader currency risks. Here’s how

Dr Daniel Staehelin is president of INSOL Europe, a pan-European professional association for restructuring and insolvency specialists. He works as an attorney and notary public at Kellerhals Anwälte Attorneys at Law and is an honorary professor at the University of Basel in Switzerland. He sat down with IFLR to share his thoughts on the state of cross-border insolvency proceedings in Europe

Gordon Stewart is president of INSOL International (2011-2013), and a partner and head of the global restructuring group at Allen & Overy in London. He has also served as INSOL vice-president, sat on its board, and acted as the first lawyer president of the Association of Business Recovery Professionals (R3).