January 2015

We hope you had a safe and happy holiday season and are looking forward to a successful year ahead.

Global financial markets had a steady end to the year which bodes well for Australian asset managers as we continue to see a growth in funds under management. Asia-Pacific saw the best year for M&A on record in 2014 with another strong year forecast. Australian M&A activity reached over US$116bn last year and grew 20%, reaching the highest levels seen since 2011. The year ended with Goldman Sachs at the top of the league table followed by Macquarie and UBS.

ECM revenue across Asia-Pacific reached $4.5bn at the end of 2014 which was the highest it had been since 2010. Goldman Sachs again led the way followed by UBS and Morgan Stanley. Syndicated lending followed a similar trend in Asia Pacific reaching $523bn, led in part by demand in China. Loan volumes in the region finished 13% higher than 2013.

Best wishes for a prosperous yeah ahead. Kindly keep us in mind should you require any recruitment assistance throughout 2015.