| Fresh 'Start' for Irish securitisation market |
Issue: 05 / 2006 |
| Start Mortgages, the specialist mortgage lender, has transacted Ireland’s first securitisation of non-conforming Irish residential mortgages. Niall Corish, chief financial officer of Start, talks to Fiona Reddan about the transaction. |
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| From copulas to CDOs - pricing tranches |
Issue: 05 / 2006 |
| In FINANCE February, Finbarr Murphy and Bernard Murphy looked at how one can price Basket Default Swaps (BDSs) using Gaussian copulas. Copula functions are a relatively new tool in finance, and they are used to construct multivariate distributions, and to investigate dependence structure between random variables. In this issue, they continue this discussion to demonstrate how one can use Copula functions to value multi-tranche synthetic Collateralised Debt Obligations (CDOs), and they point out some of the risks inherent in these instruments. |
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| IFRSs for investors in securitised transactions |
Issue: 05 / 2006 |
| Vincent Reilly reveals the intricacy of accounting for financial instruments under IFRSs, and its potentially significant impact for investors in securitised transactions. He writes that the complexity of IFRSs, and the volume of guidance surrounding it will pose a significant challenge not just to investors, but also to the SPV administration industry in Ireland. |
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| Ireland’s unique securitisation industry |
Issue: 05 / 2006 |
| Fiona Reddan looks back over the key developments in the Irish securitisation sector over the past 12 months, highlighting important events such as: two issuance firsts – the first commercial mortgage backed securitisation (CMBS) and the first residential mortgage backed securitisation (RMBS) of non-conforming loans; the implementation of the Prospectus Directive and the resulting growth of corporate deals listing on the Irish Stock Exchange; the growth in investment in asset-backed securities (ABS) by Irish based investors to €100 billion; the creation of the Irish Securitisation Forum; and the strong deal pipeline of collateralised debt obligations (CDOs) from Irish based collateral managers. |
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| Ireland: a prime location for global structured finance - the legal and taxation analysis |
Issue: 05 / 2006 |
| Since Ireland first emerged in the global securitisation and structured financing market, it has developed a highly regarded regulatory regime, and has consistently introduced and refined its legislation dealing with structured finance transactions, write Garry Ferguson and Mark O’Sullivan. A recent example of this, is this year’s amendment to the Quoted Eurobond exemption in Finance Act 2006. Following enactment, Ferguson and O’Sullivan write that there has already been a marked increase in the volume of securities issued by Irish issuers which are sold to investors in the United States. |
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| Prospectus Directive is driving growth on the ISE |
Issue: 05 / 2006 |
| Since its inception in 1999, the debt listings function on the Irish Stock Exchange has gone from strength to strength, with listings growing by 49 per cent. in 2005, writes Gerard Scully. This strong performance looks set to continue into 2006, with Quarter 1 statistics showing a 50 per cent increase over the corresponding period in 2005. |
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| The UK Budget |
Issue: 05 / 2006 |
| Financial service matters dominated the relatively sparse tax content of Gordon Brown’s tenth budget. His vision for the future of the UK should be of interest in Ireland, writes Eamonn Donaghy, tax partner, KPMG. |
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| 2006 is set to be a good year for the IEX |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| Since its launch in early 2005, the Irish Enterprise Exchange (IEX), which aims to replicate the success of London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM), has attracted 14 companies. George Brady and Gerry Beausang write that the signs for the future for the IEX are broadly encouraging, and a number of companies are currently considering, or are in the process of applying, to the IEX. Here, they give an overview of what companies need to know before applying for a listing. |
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| A Day in the Life: David Dillon, senior partner at Dillon Eustace |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| David Dillon, senior partner at Dillon Eustace Solicitors, believes in the financial services industry, and his day involves discussing new fund structures with the Financial Regulator, attending a board meeting for an IFSC company, and preparing the firm’s impending move to the city’s new ‘law quarter’ in Grand Canal Quay. |
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| A fresh start for VAT? |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| The EU Commission has published a consultation paper that may ultimately lead to fundamental changes in how VAT will operate for financial services. VAT, when it was originally introduced, was intended to apply on the broadest possible range of business transactions, with a common taxable base across Member States. The reality for VAT as it operates for financial services today is a system characterised by exemptions, hidden VAT cost, uncertainty in the application of the law and variation in treatment across Member States. The Commission's paper is intended to start the process of addressing these problems, and proposes a range of solutions designed to deal with a system of VAT that has clearly not kept pace with the changing business environment. |
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| BOI creates London syndications team |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| Bank of Ireland (BOI) is establishing a London based syndications team, in response to BOI’s growing role in the UK and European leveraged finance markets. Peter Mullen, formerly director of loan syndications with Soci?t? G?n?rale in the UK, has been hired by BOI as UK head of leveraged syndications, and will head up the new team. |
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| Careers in Finance and Financial Services: Management Consultancy |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| A career in financial services consulting can provide so many very different career paths and learning opportunities, that it’s a good idea not to start out in this career with too fixed an idea of what you will be doing, recommends Gillian Comerford, who works with Accenture. Consultants need to be able to listen, be flexible, and be open to exploring every opportunity that comes along, she says, as sometimes the greatest and most unexpected of outcomes can stem from what initially appear to be very mundane opportunities. |
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| Commodities’ role in an investment portfolio |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| Commodities played a starring role in the recent strong performance of the National Pension Reserve Fund (NPRF), with the fund’s €170 million allocation to commodities, returning almost 36 per cent, over the course of the year. The NPRF accessed the commodities market through the Goldman Sachs Commodity Index (GSCI), which has become the premier global commodity benchmark. Paul Callan explains how the GSCI is structured, and the role commodities should play in investors’ portfolios. |
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| Confidence is high among CEOs |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| Financial services CEOs are very confident about their business prospects to end-2006, and have a high profit expectation for the coming year. However, they share the frustrations of other business sector CEOs with regards to Ireland’s infrastructure, the cost of labour in Ireland and the tax cost of employment, writes Ann O’Connell. |
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| Correct a system that punishes those who fail to do the impossible |
Issue: 04 / 2006 |
| Companies are required to pay the bulk of their corporation tax one month ahead of the year end. Underpayments attract penal rates of interest. This system imposes unnecessary hardship on companies and penalises them for failing to do the impossible. It needs to be changed, writes Brian Daly. |
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