Cathay Financial Holdings launched its highly anticipated convertible yesterday Monday as SinoPac Financial Holdings joined the queue of finance issuers with a prospective $350 million deal via UBS Warburg. The Swiss bank has been awarded sole books over long standing favourite Merrill Lynch, which had been expected to win the transaction after holding a mandate for a GDR issue where UBSW had been joint-lead.
In the meantime, Cathay's smaller than anticipated issue of $700 million has divided convertible specialists. For lead manager Goldman Sachs, which has sole control of the deal with no other syndicate, execution requires a delicate balancing act between a large deal size and aggressive terms on the one side with...
