Investment Dealers' Digest articles from November 2001

Investment Dealers' Digest archives from November 2001

A Bittersweet Return.(Investment Dealers' Digest goes back to offices with new publisher)(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... This is a significant day for IDD on a couple of fronts: First, we have a new publisher, and second, we return to our offices at 195 Broadway, which is effectively the eastern border of Ground Zero. The first engenders no equivocal feelings...

Is Lazard Going Euro?(Lazard Freres and Co.)(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... Lazard Freres is becoming more Europe-centric with each passing week, and now has only token representation from the U.S. following a spate of high-level defections, sources within the firm contended last week. A number of top officials have...

Out Takes.(personnel management and service information, banking and finance sectors)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 5, 2001... Wall Street continues to absorb more news of massive job cuts as investment banks try to cope with a poor economy and the backlash of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center towers. Last week Credit Suisse First Boston fired as...

After 10 Years, a Sweeping Risk Rule; Risk-capital charge for top bonds is slashed by 80% by group of federal agencies.(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... After more than a decade's worth of grinding work, a group of federal agencies finally got a proposal approved that would, among other reforms, cut the risk-based capital charge for highly-rated securitizations to 20% from 100%. The rule,...

The Lost IPO UHS deal, scotched by the WTC nightmare, still remains in limbo.(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... Movable medical equipment company Universal Hospital Services Inc. carried on with business as usual last weekreporting third-quarter earnings, increasing a $10 million credit facility and failing, yet again, to price an apparently cursed...

Consolidation Target: Clearing; Weiss Peck and Pru Financial said to be exploring sales of clearing units.(Weiss Peck and Greer L.L.C. and Prudential Financial may sell clearing subsidiaries)(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... Clearing firms may be the next victim of industry consolidation, as rumors are circulating that Weiss, Peck & Greer LLC and Prudential Financial are each exploring possible sales of their clearing subsidiaries. Weiss Peck, which is owned...

Exit: Long Bond; Enter: Agencies; Death of 30-year Treasury note leads to rise of a favorite alternative.(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... The U.S. Treasury's sudden decision last week to no longer issue 30-year bonds has kicked off a contest for supremacy among alternative benchmark securities, and a possible surprise winner could be the federal agencies, analysts said. ...

E-bonds: At The Crossroads; Usage is up, but Street funding is collapsing, as BondBook illustrates.(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... The sudden collapse of BondBook LLC, one of the largest sites for electronic corporate bond trades, has many market observers wondering if the once-hot e-bond market could be in for more vicious contractions. BondBook, which had been...

CLARIFICATIONS.
November 5, 2001... Credit Suisse First Boston employees who have declined to take the voluntary pay cuts requested by CEO John Mack remain with the firm, a spokesman said last week. IDD reported in Outtakes last week (10/29/01) that five out of 100 bankers asked...

No Free Money After All Will put exercise be the death of CoCos?(Tyco International Ltd.'s put option)(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... As Tyco International Ltd. faces the possibility of investors rushing to cash in on the one-year put option it included in last November's $4.5 billion contingent convertible (CoCo) issue and the threat of drawing down its cash reserves, one...

Helping the Debt Load; Telecoms tap mandatories to avoid leveraging balance sheet.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 5, 2001... Looking for a way to raise cash, keep debt levels from rising and add equity without actually going to the stock market, telecom companies are joining the parade to the mandatory convertibles market. Last month, three big mandatory...

A TransAtlantic Restructuring European bicycle maker reorganizes stateside via Chapter 11.(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... Lawyers are putting the final touches to a two-part restructuring for the manufacturer of Raleigh and Diamondback bicycles that began with a sale in Europe and shifted to a reorganization under U.S. bankruptcy law. The road had been long...

Bad News=Good News for Generics Mixed earnings by major drug makers may boost coming generic issues.(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... Lackluster earnings reports by major pharmaceutical manufacturers last week could fuel investor appetite for upcoming equity issues by the industry's arch-rival: generic drug makers. Typically considered a safe haven for jittery investors...

Reconfiguring Wall Street.(banks and securities dealers need to rethink their business)(Industry Overview)
November 5, 2001... Richard Morris, veteran financial services investment banker and current president of Putnam Lovell Securities, has a vision. He pictures a bank or brokerage chief executive in his office, seated in a glass office from which he can watch his...

The $3.2 Billion Prescription Rite Aid turns around, thanks to refinancing package.(debt financing and new management helped a lot)(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... When the financial world gave Rite Aid Corp. a checkup in late 1999 the company's financial outlook was deemed critical, and its prognosis extremely poor, if not fatal. Plagued with $6.6 billion in debt-a large portion due to mature in 2002, a...

Winners, Losers in The New Gaming.(New York reverts to more gambling, some casinos stay while others are discontinued)(Brief Article)
November 5, 2001... A recession-bound economy is spurring an upcoming binge of new gambling enterprises and shaking up the ranks of winners and losers in the gaming industry. Across the country, states grappling with expected revenue shortfalls are turning to...

Barclays Bucks Firing Trend.(Diego Gradowczyk and Raul Ponte appointed to head Latin America debt capital markets)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Amid pink slips raining down on Wall Street, Barclays Capital is bucking the trend. The bank has continued hiring, this time adding two managing directors for its Latin American debt capital markets business. Raul Ponte was hired as head of...

Out Takes.(executive appointments, resignations and activities)
November 12, 2001... Moody's Corp. has named Raymond McDaniel president of Moody's Investors Service, a newly created position. In this role he will manage Moody's global ratings and research businesses. McDaniel joined Moody's structured finance group in 1987....

The Convert/IPO Two-Step Paired offerings for perilous times in new issues market.(initial public offering)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... The horrendous state of the initial public offering market is prompting some issuers to offer cross-market options, such as pairing mandatory convertibles with IPOs in order to make deals more palatable. It is a strategy recently employed...

Munis Up, But Street Is Wary Banner year undercut by gutting of former top players like Merrill.(municipal bonds, Merrill Lynch and Company Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... The municipal bond market's banner year has been undercut by the specter of former top players ditching the market, prompting speculation that more departures could come as the Street tightens its belt across all activities. It's deja vu...

A Pep Rally In Boca Trading strength, consolidation are big topics at SIA's annual confab.(Securities Industry Association annual conference)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... By Thursday morning-the first full day of the Securities Industry Association's annual meeting last week in Boca Raton, Fla.-the purpose of the meeting was clear: to bolster the spirits of an industry steeped in sadness and upheaval since the...

Loan, Bond Deals Still Iffy in MidEast But some transactions are still on track in Middle Eastern countries.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Middle Eastern borrowers have begun venturing back into a market that may have forever changed for them in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. Having priced a deal the day before the attacks, the region's most widely borrowed sovereign, the...

Other White Shoe Ready to Drop? Goldman may be poised for another round of cuts, as are its rivals.(Goldman Sachs may be planning job cuts)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Is the other white shoe ready to drop? Employees fear that Goldman Sachs, which has had only modest employee cutbacks so far, may be preparing to make deeper cuts across its business lines, including investment banking, trading, research and...

VC Nabs Banker For New Role New liaison fund-raising role may gain traction' in VC world.(venture capital; Battery Ventures, Stephen Terry appointment)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Each quarter, it grows harder for venture capitalists to raise money. But one venture capital firm has come up with an innovative and possibly unique tactic to surmount the grim fundraising environment. Battery Ventures has hired Stephen...

Dealmakers Cozy To Remote Viewing Virtual document viewing a big hit on travel-conscious Wall Street.(IntraLinks' "Deal Space" product information)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... The post-Sept. 11 economic environment has profited providers of remote software that enables bankers to get deals done without having to leave the office-a situation more and more advisory players desire for routine activities like document...

CLARIFICATION.
November 12, 2001... The on-line bond trading site Market Axess purchased Trading Edge Inc. earlier this year. In "E-Bonds: At the Crossroads" (11/05/01), IDD reported that TradeWeb LLC had acquired Trading Edge.

The Next Telecom Homeland: China China's acceptance into WTO this month boosts prospects.(World Trade Organization, Motorola Inc. and Intel Corp. plan Chinese investment strategies)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... While telecom and technology markets have been battered in the U.S. and Europe, investors have begun scouting out China as possibly the next area of growth for the sectors. Buoyed by China's expected formal acceptance into the World Trade...

A Tough Act M&A hangs in at Merrill as larger questions swirl around the firm.(Merrill Lynch and Co. reorganization includes mergers and acquisitions business)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... At 8:45 a.m. on the morning of Sept. 11, Jim Ratigan, a director in Merrill Lynch & Co.'s mergers and acquisitions group, was in a taxi in Manhattan, chatting away on a cell phone. It was a crucial conference call with Merrill colleagues and...

Welcome Home For an '80s Icon Once-disgraced MLPs are now a hot property for burned equity investors.(master limited partnerships )(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... A 1980s icon has returned in style to Wall Street, as master limited partnerships (MLPs) have become popular with investors wearied by equity market fatigue and are enjoying a banner issuance year. "People got the stuffing knocked out of...

Continental Drift Emerging market funds, shaken by market woes, head to Europe.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... A growing number of investors like White Williams Private Equity Partners are looking to the untapped resources of Europe as a font of opportunity in the increasingly dried-up emerging markets. The emerging markets are in severe turmoil as...

Dealmaking In The Post 9/11 World.(Merrill Lynch and Co. management faces unforeseen tasks)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Tom Gerlacher didn't expect that his one-year rotation as Merrill Lynch & Co.'s M&A chief operating officer would entail searching for office space and serving as an impromptu grief counselor, but those were among his primary tasks following...

Illinois May Be On the Hunt for Private Equity.(Illinois Teachers' Retirement System may look for investment managers)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... The roughly $23 billion Illinois Teachers' Retirement System, Springfield, Ill., may search for managers to handle up to $1.75 billion. The fund is under-allocated by 4% or $920 million in the private equity arena. After the fund hires a new...

Canada Post Seeks Bond Handlers.(Canada Post pension fund seeks bond managers, appoints F.L. Putnam Investment Management Co. and State Street Global Advisors)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... The roughly $4.38 billion Toronto-based Canada Post pension fund will search for Canadian bond managers to handle $1.25 billion in assets and will consider making an allocation to private equities in the coming months, said Doug Greaves, CIO...

New Orleans RS Trustee Question Remains.(New Orleans City Employees Retirement System disputes Marc Morial actuarial hiring authority)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... A duel between the trustees of New Orleans City Employees Retirement System and Mayor Marc Morial over money manager and actuarial hiring authority has moved to a near standstill and will cease when Morial leaves office on May 1, 2002. It is...

Chicago Park To Study Assets.(Chicago Park Employees Annuity and Benefit Fund to study asset allocations and liabilities)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... The roughly $600 million Chicago Park Employees Annuity & Benefit Fund, may study its asset allocations and liabilities at the beginning of next year, which could lead to searches, said Executive Director Joseph Fratto. One area the fund...

Kansas City Hoses Hires, Will Study.(Kansas City Firefighters Retirement System to conduct asset allocation study, Fidelity Investments contract)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... The roughly $325 million Kansas City Firefighters Retirement System, will conduct its first asset allocation study in almost eight years, which could lead to searches, said Rick Boersma, the fund's executive officer. "[The study] may lead...

Wyoming Retirement To Pick Winner.(Wyoming Retirement System to award contract Friday, November 16)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... The $4.2 billion Wyoming Retirement System, will pick a winner in its large-cap manager search this Friday, Nov. 16. Four finalists were chosen to run the $400 million mandate at the board's last meeting, said Harry Wales, finance manager. ...

Orca Funds Reels In Dai-Ichi Talent.(hires Thomas Arnold as senior vice president and chief currency trader)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... The Fort Lauderdale-based Orca Funds recently named Thomas Arnold as senior VP and chief currency trader. The stock and currency management company brought Arnold in to shed some of his expertise on medium-term trading strategies. His...

Curran Ditches Deutsche for Fidelity.(Sue Curran joins Fidelity Management Trust Co.)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Sue Curran has signed on with Fidelity Management Trust Co. as a senior VP and relationship manager, a newly -created position. In Curran's new capacity she will focus on the public fund sector. She hails from Deutsche Asset Management,...

Diversified Mngt. Takes on Wiseman.(Anthony Wiseman joins Diversified Management Resources)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Anthony Wiseman recently joined Diversified Management Resources, Boston, as a principal. He will be responsible for the company's global strategies and marketing services. Wiseman hails from Prudential International Investments where he...

The U.K. Shakes Asset Allocation Up.(survey of British pension plans)(Brief Article)(Polling Data)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... The United Kingdom's institutional market has evolved more rapidly than other institutional markets in the last 30 years, according to Greenwich Associates. The changes are characterized by a shift in assets from domestic equity to specialized...

Weiss Expands Investment Offerings.(Weiss, Peck and Greer)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... New York-based Weiss, Peck & Greer, primarily a bond shop, unveiled a new convertible arbitrage investment weapon, adding another vehicle to its array of alternative investment strategies. To launch the new vehicle, the firm tapped...

Payden & Rygel Launches Euro Bond Funds.(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Payden & Rygel recently unleashed two additional offshore fixed-income commingled funds, the Payden & Rygel European Bond and the Payden & Rygel High Yield Bond Fund, both domiciled in Dublin, Ireland. Representatives of the Los...

Tremont to Increase Risk Transparency For Hedge Funds.(in contract with RiskMetrics Group)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Hedge fund shop Tremont Advisers, New York, reeled in RiskMetrics Group, New York, to create a Web-based hedge fund risk reporting tool for its clientele, which includes hedge fund managers and investors, said Cynthia Nicoll, director of...

Faces and Places.(John Jenkins joins Victory Capital Management, Light Green Advisors names new board members)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... PEOPLE Victory Capital Management named John Jenkins head of consultant relations. Previously, Jenkins was a regional sales director at the Salomon Smith Barney Consulting Group. Jason Elliot joined Light Green Advisors as its new...

Bloodletting May Have Just Begun For Private Equity Big Guns.(Thomas Weisel Partners L.L.C., Credit Suisse First Boston, GE Capital)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Pink slips are flying once again at some of the industry's biggest financial guns. At least two firms - GE Capital and Credit Suisse First Boston - have confirmed that they have laid off staff. Additionally, Thomas Weisel Partners is rumored to...

Softface Captivates VCs And Captures $10M.(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Proving that outlandish ideas and unprecedented technological advances still have the power to mystify investors - even in a post dotcom era dominated by skepticism and caution - Softface Inc. is expected to announce today that it snared $10.4...

M&A Sees Only Marginal Decline In Q3.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... While IPO activity has experienced a significant decline since last year - just 13 offerings managed to get out of the gate in the third quarter compared to the 127 offerings that made it from the pipeline to the trading floor for the same...

Opthos Seals $21.6M Second Round And Preps Series C Offering For 02.(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Convinced that SONET networks will eventually become telecom fossils, Opthos Inc. is expected to announce tomorrow that it has secured $21.6 million to help continue building an all-optical alternative for metro carriers. The San Carlos,...

VCs Square Off For Peakstone.(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... A general rule of thumb for venture capitalists says that if you want to lead a deal, simply offer more attractive terms than those offered by your competition. Rules, however, are made to be broken. During a recent bidding war for a Series...

UHS Postpones Embattled IPO.(Universal Hospital Services Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Nearly three weeks after it had originally planned to reenter the public markets, Bloomington, Minn.-based Universal Hospital Services Inc. last Monday postponed its troubled IPO. The deal had been designed to raise up to $75 million, but...

Visto Punches Up $31M Deal.(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Hoping to capitalize on the pervasiveness of personal digital assistants, Visto Corp. is expected to announce today that it has completed a $31 million round of financing. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company, which provides enterprise and...

Cynthia Ringo and Ann Zeichner of Blueprint Ventures.(Interview)
November 12, 2001... Earlier this month, Cynthia Ringo and Ann Zeichner joined San Francisco-based Blueprint Ventures as general partner and venture partner, respectively. Ringo was most recently CEO of CopperCom, where she will remain chairman of the board....

Regional Roundup - East.(corporate fund raising campaigns)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Physicians Dialysis Inc. of Beverly, Mass., is raising over $5.4 million through a private placement of Series A preferred and common stock. There is a minimum investment of $1,800 required on the placement. At the time of its SEC filing, the...

Regional Roundup - West.(various companies raising money through private placements)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Mr. Stock Inc. of Phoenix is raising just over $17.99 million through a private placement of Series A preferred stock, common stock and options to acquire common stock. There is a minimum investment of $10,000 required on the placement. At the...

Regional Roundup - South.(various companies raising money through private placements)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Biometric Access Corp. of Round Rock, Texas, is raising $15.33 million through an issuance of Series B-1 and B-2 convertible preferred stock. There is a minimum investment of $10,000 required on the placement. At the time of its SEC filing, the...

Regional Roundup - Midwest.(various companies raising money through private placements)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Optate Inc. of Ann Arbor, Mich., is raising $8 million through a private placement of Series B convertible preferred stock. There is a minimum investment of $50,000 required on the placement. At the time of its SEC filing, the company had...

Grace Readies $100M Vehicle.(called Grace Hospitality LP)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Grace Venture Partners of Orlando is prepping an offering memorandum for its second private investment vehicle - tentatively dubbed Grace Hospitality LP. Although fund-raising will not begin until January, the firm has already pegged a final...

Arcturus Cues Up Debut Fund.(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... Despite the harsh winter that has been predicted for venture firms, Arcturus Capital decided to brave the market storm and begin fund raising efforts for its inaugural fund. Created through a merger between the original Arcturus Capital and...

Morgenthaler, Apax Staff Up.(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... While some private equity houses seem to be pruning their staffs, others are beefing up their ranks. First up is Morganthaler, which is expected to announce today that Krish Prabhu, former chief operating officer of Alcatel, is joining the...

Private Equity People.(John Doyle joins Ascension Health, Stephen Terry joins Battery Ventures L.P.)(Brief Article)
November 12, 2001... * John Doyle has been named president of Ascension Health Ventures LLC, the newly formed strategic venture arm of Ascension Health in St. Louis. Ascension Health Ventures was formed to scout investments in the health-care and health-care...

Juleby Watch: Temptation Island.
November 12, 2001... Juleby Hirsch, a 25-year-old former associate with Boston-based Advent International, was unveiled last Wednesday night as one of the 26 single paramours on the Fox television program Temptation Island II. He is, to our knowledge here at...

Funds Notes.(securities dealers fund raising)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 12, 2001... Compound Capital Growth Partners LP of Boston is raising $300 million through a private placement of limited liability company interests. There is a minimum investment of $1 million required on the placement. At the time of its SEC filing, the...

Barclays Folds U.S. Junk With no high-yield lead mandates this year, the unit retreats to London.(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... After failing to lead manage a single U.S. junk bond deal so far this year, Barclays Capital disbanded its U.S. high-yield operation last week. The British bank had had a U.S. junk operation for four years, but never managed to crack the major...

UBS's New Credit Posture Rising bad loans make Swiss giant stay tough on terms.(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... With its bad loans spiking in the third quarter, UBS Warburg seems to have adopted a more cautious lending strategy, refusing to budge on terms of a $3 billion credit line it offered EchoStar Communications Corp. earlier this month. UBS is...

New Trend: Precision Hiring In the midst of pink slips, hiring wish lists multiply.(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... While it will be a brutal Christmas season for many Street veterans, with almost all the bulge-bracket shops axing thousands of employees in a round of belt-tightening, there are also signs that a counter-movement of precision hiring is in the...

New Hope For Retail Traders? Futures industry begins drumbeat for single stock futures' Q1 launch.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 19, 2001... The futures industry will soon have a new carrot to wave before the now-haggard faces of day tradersfutures based on single U.S. stocks such as Microsoft Corp. or International Business Machines Corp. After years of delays and rancorous debate...

Goldman's Foray Into Hoi Polloi Why a four-way co-manager slot on a $70 million secondary?(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... Bankers were startled to learn that Goldman Sachs had deigned to participate in a four-way co-manager split on a recent $70 million stock offering for Alamosa PCS Holdings Inc., but the apparently humbling decision was likely a strategic plan...

All That Jazz New CDO built for managers who like improvising.(purported to be first transaction allowing managers to fluctuate between cash bonds and credit default swaps)(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... Deutsche Bank is putting the finishing touches to Jazz, a new collateralized debt obligation that will provide some CDO investors with far more flexibility than they have hitherto enjoyed. The deal is managed by AXA Investment Managers, a...

IPO Recovery: Not for Techs As the market starts to come back, unease remains for once-dominant sector.(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... A long-awaited banquet of initial public offering new issues is being served but a large number of aspiring tech players believe there is no place at the table for them. While a recent surge of new IPO issues has some bankers believing...

Return of The King'.(John Gutfreund will join C.E. Unterberg Towbin as a senior managing director)(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... John Gutfreund, considered a symbol of tough-mindedness and sagacity on Wall Street until his forced resignation from Salomon Brothers a decade ago, has returned to battle at the age of 72 and will join C.E. Unterberg Towbin as a senior...

Out Takes.(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... Merrill Lynch & Co.'s chairman of global leveraged finance, Chris Johnson, has left the firm amid fears of yet another restructuring. He is believed to have taken the bank's voluntary buyout package, which insiders say can pay up to a year's...

Online Mergers: Yak Yak Yak With much talk and little action so far, online brokers go on layaway plan.(Brief Article)
November 19, 2001... Like many financial services companies right now, online brokerages are exploring possible mergers to keep them from going broke. But, while plenty of conversations are underway between potential partners, buyers are reluctant to put up cash to...

Big Is Better Mergers are coming to troubled telecom, with regionals leading the way.(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
November 19, 2001... When the steel girders from the collapsed 7 World Trade Center pierced Verizon Communications Inc.'s switching station like a sharp spear, disrupting New York City telephone service for weeks, few could have imagined that the New York company...

A Reckoning For CLECs Huge debtloads, recession and post-Sept. 11 jitters put upstarts' survival in question.(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
November 19, 2001... For CLECs, the upstart local business telecommunications companies who were created from the Telecommunications Act of 1996, 2001 has been a year of reckoning. Mix their huge debtloads and junk status with economic recession and a...

Who's Who in Media & Telecom Finance.(various companies)(Directory)(Illustration)(Statistical Data Included)
November 19, 2001... BANC OF AMERICA SECURITIES LLC 9 West 57th Street New York, NY 10019 Phone:212-583-8000 Website:www.bofasecurities.com Contact Person for New Business Scott R. Brakebill, Managing Director, Head of Global...

Big Oil Deal Ties Up, Well, Almost Everyone: Busload of advisors for Conoco/Phillips just happen to be conflicted.(Phillips Petroleum Co merger with Conoco Inc)(Brief Article)
November 26, 2001... The proposed $15.4 billion merger between Phillips Petroleum Co. and Conoco Inc. is bound to be one of the year's most successful deals, and not least for the raft of advisors involved; the two energy concerns cannily employed a Who's Who in...

LaBranche to Trade Stock Futures: Others could follow suit as buzz over new products grows.(LaBranche and Co Inc service information)(Brief Article)
November 26, 2001... LaBranche & Co. Inc., the largest stock specialist on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, is considering trading single stock futures once that product gets a regulatory green light, which is expected early next year. "I think...

ABS Credit Woes Arrive En Masse: Once-immune market now troubled, especially in aircraft, franchise deals.(asset-backed securities )(Brief Article)
November 26, 2001... The asset-backed securities market's growing credit problems, which appeared on the horizon earlier this year, have now arrived at its front door. In particular, securitizations backed by aircraft leases and franchise loans have rating...

Bear's New Financing Vehicle: Putting repos and swaps off the balance sheet could save capital.(Liquid Funding Ltd. asset fund introduced byBear, Stearns and Co.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
November 26, 2001... Offering a new twist on the arbitrage special vehicle theme, this month Bear, Stearns & Co. launched Liquid Funding, Ltd, the first vehicle set up to service the trillion dollar repurchase agreements and total return swaps markets. Liquid...

A Rainy-Day Strategy... Soaked: Wall Street's move to fees from commissions-did it matter?(Merrill Lynch and Co and J.P. Morgan Chase strategy failure)(Brief Article)
November 26, 2001... A rainy-day strategy designed to protect earnings in the event of a bull-to-bear market metamorphosis, and implemented by a host of Wall Street firms including Merrill Lynch & Co. and J.P. Morgan Chase, has apparently failed to deliver on its...

The Worst Becomes Best: With restructuring under way, Xerox convertible hits big.(convertible bond deal)(Brief Article)
November 26, 2001... Xerox Corp., whose $1 billion convertible bond was the worst performing one of 2000, last week pulled off one of 2001's most successful convertible deals-a twice-increased offering of $900 million trust preferred convertible securities that...

Securitizing Bad Debt: Following Fleet and CIBC, more banks prepare to offload bum loans.(banking industry bad debt management)(Brief Article)
November 26, 2001... With bad loans, delinquencies and bankruptcies on the rise, banks have been casting around for ways of reducing risk. The recent increase in corporate credit troubles has made the issue all the more pressing, and several Wall Street firms are...

No Good News For Optics: Good in disaster scenarios, but switching prospects still decline.(industry company financial and management information)(Brief Article)
November 26, 2001... Pity the poor optical switching companies. Despite their technology's ability to function in a disaster situation, those companies have failed to get a boost following the terrorist attacks. Instead, the recessionary economy and lagging demand...