Asia Pacific
ASEAN: The Long Road Towards A Cross-Border Funding Market
Since its formation in 1967, ASEAN has followed a path of gentle integration. But despite the bloc’s avowed intention to pursue financial integration, outlined in the ASEAN Banking Integration Framework (ABIF), the industry remains fragmented across the region and riddled with regulatory obstacles.
14 Nov 2019
IDFC Asset Management: NBFC Defaults Are Cyclical, Not Structural Issue
Late last year, India’s markets were rocked by a number of high-profile defaults in its non-banking financial institutions (NBFCs) sector. Since then, Narendra Modi’s thumping election victory, weakening domestic consumption and the government’s potential Eurobond debut have added to the noise, painting a puzzling picture of India’s underlying economic potential. Bonds & Loans speaks with Suyash…
18 Sept 2019
Modi’s Growth Plans Could be Hamstrung by Stagnating State Banks
Reinvigorated by his recent re-election, President Narendra Modi has vowed to set India on the path towards growth after the country’s weakest GDP print in nearly five years. Aggressive rate cuts, fiscal loosening, and a potential Eurobond issuance may help spark growth, but serious concerns about stagnant public-sector banks weigh heavily on the outlook.
12 Sept 2019
Is East Africa Changing Its Attitude Towards Chinese Investment?
The recent cancellation of high-profile Chinese infrastructure projects in Tanzania and Kenya does not indicate a shift in attitude towards investment from China, writes Robert Besseling, executive director of EXX Africa.
20 Aug 2019
GCC Corporates Benefit from Asian Long Money
As rates continue to fall in many parts of Asia, investors have increasingly turned to emerging markets in their hunt for yield. But given their generally cautious and conservative approach to investment, many have favoured so-called ‘safe emerging markets’. Now, as growth begins to soften in China, a growing number are turning their attention to the GCC’s corporate credit market to find secure,…
9 Aug 2019
Invest in Turkey: One Belt One Road Already Helping Attract Capital from Asia
Despite being caught in the turbulence that rocked emerging markets in 2018, Turkey remains an attractive destination for foreign investors, boasting strong fundamentals and a growing pipeline of projects in need of capital. Bonds & Loans spoke with Ahmet Burak Dağlıoğlu, Vice President of Invest in Turkey, about the growing role of Asian investment in the country, funding diversification and…
30 Jul 2019
Asian Investors Continue to Look to GCC Despite Rising Geopolitical Risk
For Asian investors searching for returns across emerging markets, the GCC has long been considered a relatively low-risk, higher-yielding option. But with geopolitical tensions reaching a boiling point, and a number of GCC states fiscally exposed to oil price swings, former safe havens could become a riskier bet.
16 Jul 2019
Trump’s Trade Policies: Sacrificing Long-Term Gain for Short-Term Pain
Donald Trump’s willingness to replace long-term global political planning in favour of short-term political opportunism marks a departure from 70-odd years of US foreign policy. In a nutshell, after a long line of US presidents worked hard to build global political capital and the Trump Administration has now decided to spend it. What does this mean for investors and policy makers in other…
9 Jul 2019
Latin America: China seeks to Diversify its Lending and Investment Practices
Chinese lending and investment to Latin America has exploded over the past two decades, with China consequently becoming the region’s largest creditor. But the scope and scale of Chinese activity is changing as it looks to invest in new sectors and countries, raising questions about its long-term presence in the region.
30 May 2019
Securities Commission Malaysia: SRI Sukuk Broadens Investor Base that Participate in SDGs
Malaysia has been pioneering the sustainable Islamic finance market well before the country’s 2014 launch of the Sustainable and Responsible investment (SRI) Sukuk framework. Zainal Izlan Zainal Abidin, Deputy Chief Executive of Malaysia’s Securities Commission, says the country needs to build on the seven SRI sukuk issued to date and pull more borrowers from the private sector into the…
23 May 2019