iBanker.jp

The article reference below highlights an interesting development. I happen to know that Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asian team is much more nervous about the Volcker rule and does not rule out the possibility of having to become independent. JPMorgan, on the other hand, seems to be on prowl to acquire HF/PE firms. I think there are two points that are worth mentioning in connection with these differences: 1. JPM is much more of a deposit holding bank than MS. As such, it is likely they will be less affected by any looming regulation. 2. Even more importantly IMHO, Brazil is increasingly catching the headlines and claiming the spotlight, in a sense becoming "the next China". And in many respects, for a good reason: it's much less reliant on exports (and when it comes to oil, on imports), the fundamentals look robust, the GDP growth is accelerating and the inflation has been within a reasonable range for years. I have never had the pleasure of talking to a Brazilia...

Morgan Stanley and MUFG agree trading deal : "The two banks have closed an agreement to integrate their brokerage operations in Tokyo, paving the way for the two banks to build an international investment banking venture"

Nikkei Shimbun, a leading Japanese business daily, reported today (original text in Japanese), that a plan to reorganize Morgan Stanley's (MS) securities business in Japan, including possibly bringing it under one roof with Mitsubishi UFJ (MUFJ), is under consideration. The strategy is to be elaborated by June 2009.

It is now official - the world is changing, and Asia is leading this change. First it was Middle East, then Singapore, and now China is joining the race to bail out the ailing Western financial institutions. China Investment Corp. ( CIC ), a sovereign wealth fund ( SWF ) will be holding up to 9.9% of Morgan Stanley shares by injecting as much as USD 5 bln . Rejoice the West, the East is coming to help you! Or is it? SWF accumulate government money that come from oil, trade or other sources, and therefore cannot be independent in the way they conduct their investments. They are formed by governments and work for them. And if Middle East and Singapore have long-lasted business relationship with the West, and can be at least to some extent expected to stay within the limits of business practice accepted in the West, can CIC be trusted just as much? CIC was established this year, and instantly made headlines by investing into Blackstone Group LP at the time of IPO . They later made los...