People
&Markets
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Vishu Ramachandran
has been promoted to
STANDARD
CHARTERED’s group
head of retail banking,
a newly created role.
Based in Singapore, he
will report to Ben
Hung, chief executive
officer for retail
banking and wealth
management and
regional CEO forGreater China and
North Asia.
Ramachandran, who
will take up his new
role on July 16, is a
long-time consumer
banking executive at
StanChart who was
most recently chief risk
officer for retail
banking.JP MORGAN
appointed Francesco
Cardinali as its senior
country officer for Italy.
Cardinali will replace
Guido Nola, who is
leaving the bank. The
Wall Street firm also
named Vittorio Grilli,
currently chairman of
corporate and
investment bank
business for EMEA, aschairman for Italy.
Cardinali joined JP
Morgan in 1996 as an
investment banking
analyst with the Italian
financial institutions
group and was most
recently co-head of the
ECM EMEA equity
solutions team.Kexim raises the Samurai standard
EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF KOREA chairman and
president Sung-soo Eun said the export credit
agency’s latest Samurai issue was not just for
its own funding needs but to pave the way for
other South Korean issuers to follow, stressing
the double role Kexim has as the nation’s
leading international borrower.
/Nû*UNEû ûTHEûAGENCYûRAISEDûcBNû
53BN ûSPLITûBETWEENûcBNûOFû
MONTHûNOTESûANDûcBNûOFûTHREE
YEARûBONDS û
making the most of the positive momentum
after the historic June 12 summit between
US President Donald Trump and North
Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
“This deal was a great success and
DElNITELYûCONTRIBUTEDûTOû+EXIMSûOWNû
annual funding needs, as well as diversifying
our funding horizon,” Eun told IFR during a
trip to Tokyo for the signing ceremony.
The trade, via joint lead managers Daiwa,
Merrill Lynch Japan Securities, Mitsubishi UFJ
Morgan Stanley and Mizuho, was the largest
Samurai issue from Asia ex-Australia.
%UN ûWHOûTOOKûOFlCEûINû3EPTEMBERû û
said the success of the deal made clear there
is strong appetite among Japanese investors
for South Korean credits.
“I think there would be more issuance to
follow,” he said. “I believe that is one of Kexim’s
ROLESûASûAûLEADINGûBORROWERûnûWEûAREûTHEûlRSTûTOû
test the market, do a successful deal, and pave
the way for other issuers to follow.”
Indeed, South Korean telecoms service
provider KT Corp returned to the Samurai
MARKETûTHEûFOLLOWINGûWEEKûWITHûAûcBNû
dual-tranche two and three-year transaction.
Last month’s Kexim deal came after an
almost three-year absence. The previous deal
WASûINû3EPTEMBERûûWHENûITûISSUEDûcBNûOFû
TWO
YEARûNOTESûANDûcBNûOFûTHREE
YEARûBONDS
Explaining the long hiatus, Eun said: “Due
to the cross-currency swap levels, it didn’t
make much sense for us to raise funds in theSamurai market and swap them to use in
another currency.”
He said the Samurai market had always been
at the top of the list for consideration, however,
and that the agency had shown its
commitment to Japanese investors by holding
numerous non-deal roadshows in Tokyo to
provide updates on its credit and performance.GEOPOLITICAL RISK
Kexim picked this time for the comeback for
two reasons. “First, we have seen growth in
our Japanese yen assets in recent months,
which prompted a natural need for yen
funding,” Eun said.
The second reason was the dramatic
improvement in the geopolitical situation in
and around the Korean peninsula. “[This] had
been one of the key downside risks that many
investors were voicing concerns over,” he said.
Several summits between the two Koreas
culminated in the historic meeting between the
US and North Korea in Singapore. “We felt the
timing was ripe for us to return to the market,”
Eun said. Less than a week later, Kexim started
marketing the Samurai trade on June 18.
Kexim said it wants to stay committed to
Japanese investors, who have traditionally
been supportive of it and other South
Korean issuers.
“Japan is one of Korea’s closest neighbours
with one of the largest credit markets in the
world,” Eun said. “We want to stay committed
to our investors and, once again, become a
regular issuer in the Samurai market.”
Asked about its funding plan for the
REMAINDERûOFûTHEûYEAR û+EXIMûGAVEûNOûSPECIlCû
issuance schedule. “Our funding requirement
FORûTHISûYEARûISû53BNûANDûWEûHAVEûALREADYû
SECUREDû53BN ûWHICHûISûAROUNDûûOFûOURû
target, so we are quite comfortable with
where we are at the moment,” Eun said.
Takahiro Okamotomake it easier to list in multiple trading venues.
Globacap plans to test the platform with
its own fundraising, which Milston said will
AIMûTOûRAISEûABOUTû53Mû)TûWANTSûTOûFULLYû
launch the platform in late October, and is
onboarding a few companies for that.
BlockEx, based in London and now with
86 staff, is targeting bond issuers looking to
raise upwards of £5m, plus lead managers,
arrangers and investors.
“Under the FCA oversight process BlockEx
would seek to issue a number of bonds with
a nominal value of up to £250m,” said James
Godfrey, MD of capital markets at BlockEx.
He said that would probably come from
10-12 offerings.
BlockEx says its digital asset exchange
platform is built to feel familiar to traders,
but also appeal to new types of investors,
and has a digital token product offering that
helps companies launch their own ICOs.
/THERûlRMSûFOCUSEDûONûCAPITALûRAISINGû
platforms that have been chosen for the FCA
sandbox programme include 2030 , TOKEN
MARKET and CAPEXMOVE.
They also include FINEQIA, a blockchain based
digital platform that enables companies to
issue and administer debt and equity securities,
including bonds backed by cryptoassets.
Steve Slater
municipal bonds, zaito agency bonds and
corporate bonds, according to DealWatch, a
Thomson Reuters publication.
No such impact was seen in the Samurai
MARKET ûWHEREû-5-33ûWASûONEûOFûlVEûLEADû
managers of a multi-tranche offering for
French bank BPCE last week.
Market participants would not comment
on record about the change in the various
syndicates. However, a few sources pointed
to the timing of the regulator’s statement as
the likely reason for MUMSS’s exclusion.
Takahiro Okamoto