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The lack of EU recognition of Islamic banks has contributed led to their lack of profitability. Here’s why

Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA) is recognised for having the key components for a strong DCM group; a large book and innovative strategies for tackling deals. While nearly anything will sell in an active market, prevailing conditions have required greater creativity on the part of banking teams.

Global bank reforms – most notably Basel III – have spurred the development of alternatives to traditional bank lending, and in turn, prompted the increasing sophistication of Asia's DCM. With its focus on emerging markets, Standard Chartered has been at the forefront of DCM's evolution in the region.

Financial services firms have much to gain from investment protections being discussed in the EU-US free trade negotiations

Mexico’s state-run power sector is set to liberalise. The proposed reforms give an early indication of how private entities will be able to participate

The region’s market watchdogs are beefing up their surveillance and enforcement activities. Here are the latest statistics and strategies

Felipe Cuberos of Prietocarrizosa analyses the development of bankruptcy and restructuring laws in Colombia

Alexei Bonamin Marcus Vinicius Fonseca On September 5 2013, the Brazilian National Monetary Council enacted Resolution 4,263, which finally regulated structured operations certificates (certificado de operações estruturadas) or COEs. Similar to a structured note, COEs are already used by banks in other countries, which allows the combination of different investment structures, such as fixed-income and variable-income, in one instrument. The COE was created in 2010 together with financial bills (letras financeiras) by the Provisional Measure (Medida Provisória) of December 15 2009, (converted into Law 12,249 of June 11 2010), to be a fundraising alternative for banks established in Brazil.

Elias Neocleous On August 8 the Cyprus Government published a roadmap for the lifting of restrictions that were imposed on banking operations in March 2013, and which apply to funds in the domestic banking system at the time of the bail-in. Funds remitted to Cyprus from abroad after March 27 2013 are exempt from the restrictions. The government is committed to restoring the free movement of capital as soon as conditions allow, and indeed a number of relaxations of the controls have already taken place. The roadmap reflects the strategy agreed between the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Cyprus and the troika of international lenders, namely that controls should remain in place only for as long as is strictly necessary, and should be gradually removed through prudent incremental steps, so as to safeguard financial stability.

Andrés Felipe Parra Ana María Rodríguez In 2011, the Colombian Congress enacted an anti-corruption statute known as Law 1474 of 2011 to bring the country's anti-corruption laws up to international standards. The Law contains provisions that specifically refer to anti-corruption policies and prohibitions that are applicable to all sectors of the economy. Therefore, companies undertaking business activities in Colombia should adopt specifically tailored compliance policies and procedures, including the establishment of compliance manuals, to heighten awareness within the corporate organisation and minimise the potential legal liabilities that may arise out of unlawful conduct by any of its employees or third-parties acting on the entity's behalf. Surprisingly, most companies in Colombia remain unaware of the existence of the new anti-corruption regulations, and the severe penalties that may be imposed for violations of the new law. One of the most significant penalties includes the potential cancellation or suspension of the company's registration with the Chamber of Commerce if it can be proven that the entity has sought to benefit from the commission of a criminal offence against the public administration, such as the commission of a bribery-related offence.