October 2014 Issue

After the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, the Japanese authorities made a deliberate push to increase power production from renewables, in particular wind, solar and geothermal. Before the incident Japanese electricity generation consisted of 29 percent from nuclear, 25 percent coal, 28 percent LNG, 8 percent oil and 10 percent from renewables. The aim became to increase the renewables share of production to 20 percent by 2020, as announced by the Japanese Prime Minister in May 2011.

In the wake of the global financial crisis, the banking world has been under significant pressure and whereas many challenges are being addressed the story is far from over. International response from governments and regulators has been principally focused on establishing a more robust banking system. Increased liquidity requirements need to be implemented, leverage measures put in place and recovery and resolution procedures imposed in line with the Third Basel regulation.

PDI asks Piramal’s Jayesh Desai about his firm’s $1.5 billion tieups with institutional investors APG and CPPIB this year and how he perceives the Indian market at present.

As the private debt asset class matures, the growing trend for large investors to create dedicated pockets for direct lending out of their credit portfolios is driving down the fees managers can charge in the space. Claire Coe Smith reports.

Przemek Szczepanski, partner at Syntaxis Capital in Warsaw, looks at the current investment opportunity in the CEE region

The Australian bank, which has already brought on several senior CMBS specialists, is now partnering with Principal Real Estate Investors for a first foray into mortgage securitisation. By Anastasia Donde

In September, delegates flocked to Private Debt Investor’s inaugural conference in New York. Among the many burning issues they discussed: what evidence is there that the market is overheating? Anastasia Donde reports.

The real estate debt leaders at Heitman, Greg Leadholm and Steve Bailey, are drawing from their extensive industry experience and the firm’s broader real estate platform to focus on mezzanine opportunities.

New York private credit firm Sound Harbor Partners mainly invests in below investment-grade syndicated loans, and while founder Michael Zupon admits this is a particularly risky part of the market, he thinks the return potential is worth it and the risks can be managed. He recently sat down with Anastasia Donde in New York to talk through the firm’s methods.

On the surface, the recapitalisation of Solina, a French food ingredients producer, looks like a simple refinancing and acquisition capital deal. But on closer inspection it highlights how traditional mezzanine providers are making inroads into senior lending, territory that was once the preserve of banks. Anna Devine reports.