The Australian arm of UBS has again been named the best investment bank in Australia by East Coles, an independent market research firm, according to Asian Banking & Finance.
The study, which has been running for over 10 years, aims to identify which investment banks and bankers corporate Australia values the most highly across investment banking services overall, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), equity capital markets (ECM), debt capital markets (DCM) and equities research.
UBS topped five out of nine categories in the research. It was also hailed number one Best Investment Bank, M&A, Equity Capital Markets, and Debt Capital Markets banking categories. Barry Sharkey,Executive Director and co-head of Capital Markets at UBS, was also voted the Best Debt Capital Markets banker.
The rankings for best investment bank in 2013 were:
1. UBS
2. Macquarie
3. JP Morgan
4. Citi
5. Goldman Sachs
6. Deutsche Bank
7. BBY
8. Record Point
9. Credit Suisse
10. Lazard
China is drawing up rules to regulate the shadow banking industry, reports the the Financial Times, as non-bank funding institutions grow to representing about half of all credit extended in the country.
The FT says that the move indicates a more permissive official stance than many observers had anticipated.
Making your fantasies come true
Playing fantasy sports can now be as lucrative as being a senior investment analyst, according to a Bloomberg report.
The explosion in fantasy leagues in the US is encouraging Wall Street types to pursue their hobby as a full-time money earner. In 2012 alone, the US Fantasy Sports Trade Association said players spent US$3.38 billion on products, services and entry fees.
Asia is looking to capitalise on the growing popularity of the ‘sport’, with AsianLogic and TotelFootball having teamed up last year to promote fantasy football.
Bitcoin has topped the US$1,000 mark again despite attempts by regulators around the world including in China to stamp out the virtual currency.
The Financial Times reports that t China’s Bitcoin brigades have started the new year much as they left off 2013 – with a dominant share of global transactions in the virtual currency, helped also by the recent announcement in the US that Zynga, the provider of online social network games, will launch a pilot programme to accept the virtual currency.
Coutts continues hiring in SE Asia
The RBS-owned private banking arm has just appointed a new market head for Indonesia, and is planning to add new staff as part of its growth strategy for the region.