Japan

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  RBS names new country head in Japan

  10 Mar 2010 M&A, Stock & exchange, Investment banking, Bonds, Market move
  RBS has appointed Ernfred Olsen as country executive and head of global banking and markets for Japan. Olsen joined the lender last month and succeeds Lee Knight, who relocated to Singapore to become head of markets.

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  Investment bank Nomura reshuffles global deck

  08 Mar 2010 Investment banking, Market move
  Nomura revealed a series of management appointments today in an organisational reshuffle. It includes promoting Hiromasa Yamazaki to global markets CEO as well as Rachid Bouzouba to co-head of global equities.

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  Business news: the past week in Asia

  26 Feb 2010 Market wrap
  BoCom announces plans for a rights issue, while Morgan Stanley moves closer to selling its stake in CIC. Hong Kong said it would raise taxes to deflate a potential property bubble and Dai-ichi Life’s targets what would be the world’s largest IPO this year.

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  Japan's investment bank of the year: Nomura

  25 Feb 2010 Investment banking, Polls & awards
  Nomura was involved in notable M&A transactions, dominated equity issuance and did a sterling job in bond coverage, too. It rightly wins Asiamoney's award as best investment bank in Japan over the past year.

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  Japan's loan arranger of the year: Mizuho

  24 Feb 2010 Loans, Polls & awards
  Mizuho Corporate Bank's willingness to support Japanese companies during trying times over the past year earned it Asiamoney's 2009 loans arranger of the year award.

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  Japan's bond arranger of the year: Mizuho

  23 Feb 2010 Bonds, Polls & awards
  Mizuho has long been a force in domestic, euro-yen and Samurai bond financings, and 2009 proved no exception. It earns Asiamoney's award as Japan's best bond arranger of the past year.

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  Japan's equity arranger of the year: Nomura

  22 Feb 2010 Stock & exchange, Investment banking, Polls & awards
  Nomura is almost the only domestic investment bank willing and able to arrange sizeable equity issues. Its dominance, as bookrunner on nine of the top 10 deals of last year, made it a shoe-in for Asiamoney's award.

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  Japan's M&A adviser of the year: Nomura

  19 Feb 2010 M&A, Investment banking, Polls & awards
  The investment bank was responsible for US$29.4 billion of completed M&A deal flow last year for a 21.5% share of the overall market. It earns Asiamoney's nod as Japan's best M&A adviser over the past year.

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  Japan's deals of the year: international bond

  18 Feb 2010 Bonds, Polls & awards
  Rapid execution and investor familiarity with JBIC’s name ensured that its US$2.5 billion 2% bonds due 2011 went seamlessly. It wins Asiamoney's award for best international bond in Japan over the past year.

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  Japan's best deals: local currency bond

  18 Feb 2010 Bonds, Polls & awards
  Panasonic's three-tranche local bond was the firm's first domestic issue in seven years, offering investors a name diversity they welcomed. It wins Asiamoney's award for best local currency bond in Japan over the past year.

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  Japan's deals of the year: equity offering

  17 Feb 2010 Stock & exchange, Polls & awards
  Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group's follow-on offering in December 2008 was the nation's largest since 2006. It was a trendsetter and earns Asiamoney's award in this category.

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  Japan's deals of the year: equity-linked offering

  17 Feb 2010 Stock & exchange, Bonds, Polls & awards
  Takashimaya's issue of zero-coupon, five-year convertible bonds in October helped to open the door for successive issues out of Japan. It earns Asiamoney's award as Japan's best equity-linked offering over the past year.

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  Japan's deals of the year: M&A

  16 Feb 2010 M&A, Polls & awards
  The Itochu-led consortium's acquisition of a 40% stake in Brazil's iron producer Namisa takes the prize for the top M&A from Japan in 2009. The successful bid beat out international competitors to secure some of the raw materials that the island's economy so badly needs.

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  BoA-Merrill lures Robert Chiu back from Nomura

  11 Feb 2010 Investment banking
  Robert Chiu has quit as Nomura’s Asia head of telecommunications, media and technology and will re-join Bank of America-Merrill Lynch, asiamoney.com can reveal. He lasted at Nomura for little over a year.

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  Business news: the past week in Asia

  11 Feb 2010 Market wrap
  Australia’s richest man gets Chinese funding for a mega-mine, Kirin and Suntory end merger discussions, Temasek launches a new US$4 billion fund, and Taiwan lets its chip- and screen-makers invest more into the mainland.

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  Asia ready for dark pools plunge, says Chi-East CEO

  09 Feb 2010 Stock & exchange, Broking
  The region is primed for alternative crossing networks for investors, says Ned Phillips, the new CEO of Chi-East, the joint venture dark pool between Singapore Exchange and Chi-X Global.

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  Macquarie sees ‘extreme value’ in Japanese stocks

  03 Feb 2010 Stock & exchange, Nations & economies
  Japanese equities are being tipped to outperform the rest of Asia by Macquarie analysts as their valuations are currently the cheapest in the region. They are also likely to receive a further boost from recent declines in the yen.

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  Business news: the past week in Asia

  22 Jan 2010 Market wrap
  China's GDP grew at 10.7% in the fourth quarter, raising the liklihood of monetary tightening, while regulators also ordered some China banks to halt lending to rein in credit growth. Japan Airlines filed for bankruptcy protection and SocGen ran into trouble in India’s equities market.

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  Nomura gains ASX trading licence

  20 Jan 2010 Stock & exchange
  The bank announces it has gained admission to be a trading participant on the Australian Securities Exchange. The move is further evidence of the firm’s ambitions to expand its equities business across the region.

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  Regional rebound forecast for samurai bond market

  19 Jan 2010 Bonds
  Debt bankers highlight signs that Asia-Pacific’s samurai bond market is opening up having floundered after the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers. They expect activity to be more pronounced this year.

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  Nomura names regional investment banking heads

  11 Jan 2010 Investment banking, Market move
  The bank has made Patrick Schmitz-Morkramer and Colin Banfield heads of investment banking for Asia ex-Japan. They succeed Glenn Schiffman, who moves to New York as the firm’s head of investment banking for the Americas.

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  Business news: the past week in Asia

  08 Jan 2010 Market wrap
  Japan’s government names a new finance minister while Beijing edges up local borrowing rates. The Philippines enjoys great demand for its bond reopening, while firms set to list on the ChiNext exchange are enjoying such good demand that the bourse could alter its rules to dampen investor enthusiasm.

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  Investors unnerved by Japanese banks’ capital needs

  07 Jan 2010 Stock & exchange, Nations & economies
  Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group is set to launch a US$8.7 billion share issue and Mizuho Financial Group is likely to follow. The deals will test weak investor resolve and threaten to undermine the lenders’ financial performance, writes Asiamoney correspondent Peter McGill.

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  Credit Suisse bolsters Asia-Pacific fixed income business

  06 Jan 2010 Bonds, Broking, Market move
  The bank makes two senior appointments in Hong Kong, re-hiring Atsushi Mizuno from Bank of Japan and relocating Bunt Ghosh from London. It is striving to grow its fixed income teams in the region by over 20% in 2010.