Commonwealth Bank of Australia's €1.5bn five-year issue was the third and comfortably the most successful Australian transaction since the country passed supportive legislation for covered bonds in late 2011. Joint bookrunner on the deal, BNP Paribas, put its success down to timing and the choice of currency.

Africa’s poor infrastructure has caused it to lag behind other emerging markets over the past few decades. And while better infrastructure is crucial for the continent’s economic development, it can also boost democracy and good governance.

As China moves from producer to consumer, as more bilateral trade agreements are signed, and as more environmental disasters show just how vulnerable a country's manufacturing base can be, a new era is emerging that is changing the entire philosophy of the global supply chain.

Starvation and the effects of a poor diet continue to blight a large percentage of the world's population, despite the fact that enough food is produced to eradicate hunger. It is now time for the private sector to play a bigger role in tackling this problem, which would bring with it economic and humanitarian rewards.

After a turbulent year across the Middle East and north Africa, Bahrain's finance minister describes how his country is finding stability again as its banks and businesses continue to innovate.

There is a feeling in some circles that as the East rises, the West must simultaneously decline. But why? Rising prosperity in Asia means more opportunities for businesses and banks in North America and Europe, and the only ones to suffer will be those who continue to think along 'East versus West' lines.

Banks are swapping assets in a bid to transform illiquid assets into liquid, highly rated assets that are eligible for repo. But do regulators fully understand the implications and fears that banks are repeating the mistakes of past, and just who has all the repos?