International law firm Ince & Co Singapore LLP represented Oro Negro in its international bond issuance, an offering of US$725 million Notes due 2019. The transaction closed on 24 January 2014. The Bonds are registered and issued in the Norwegian Central Securities Depository (Verdipapirsentralen or VPS) and an application will be made for the Bonds to be listed either on the Irish Stock Exchange or Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
 
The sole arranger was Pareto Securities AS and Pareto Securities Pte. Ltd., an independent investment bank headquartered in Oslo, Norway.

DLA Piper has advised Ukrainian Public Joint Stock Company Bank Finance and Credit in a refinancing transaction of US$95 million Eurobonds, due in 2014, on matters of English, US, Ukrainian and Dutch law.

Bank Finance and Credit has refinanced its Loan Participation Notes (LPNs) due in 2014 with the issuance of new US$100 million 9.25% LPNs due in 2019 issued by Finance & Credit Ukraine BV through a successful exchange offer and consent solicitation process.

DLA Piper's London and Bucharest offices has advised the government of Romania, acting through the Ministry of Public Finances, on the ground-breaking issuance of €2 billion notes under its €15 billion Global Medium Term Note Programme.

The successful issuance was made in two series of €1 billion each, one with a 10 year maturity and one with a 30 year maturity. It was the first time in the sovereign's history that a 30 year note was issued, allowing the Ministry to further its goal to extend the maturity profile of its public debt.

Latham & Watkins advised J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Goldman Sachs International and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC as initial purchasers in a global offering of US$1.4 billion of 6^7/8% Senior Secured Notes due 2024 by VTR Finance, the parent of VTR GlobalCom and VTR Wireless.

Clifford Chance has advised Deutsche Bank, ICBC and Standard Chartered Bank as joint lead managers on the issuance of bonds by Volkswagen International Finance. The transaction has a volume of CNY1.2 billion (approx. EUR144.5 million). The bonds are guaranteed by Volkswagen AG.

The maturity of the bonds is 2019 and their coupon is 3.5 percent.

The Clifford Chance team comprised partner Sebastian Maerker, senior associate Dr. Felix Biedermann (both Banking & Capital Markets, Frankfurt) as well as partner Matt Fairclough (Capital Markets, Hong Kong).

Latham & Watkins advised the Joint Lead Managers, HSBC Saudi Arabia Limited and Saudi Fransi Capital Company, on Saudi Electricity Company’s (SEC) issuance of SAR4.5 billion (US$1.2 billion) Sukuk Certificates.

The transaction represents the first public Saudi Sukuk issuance of 2014 and SEC’s first public Sukuk issuance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in three years. In 2012 and 2013 SEC successfully issued US$3.75 billion 144A and Reg S Sukuk Certificates in the international markets, including the first international 30 year Sukuk by any issuer.

Linklaters LLP acted for The Bank of Nova Scotia, as lender, in connection with a US$22.5m bilateral loan to OPP Film, S.A., a Peruvian industrial company.  The proceeds of the loan will be used by the borrower to refinance existing debt.  The transaction closed on January 20, 2014.

The Linklaters team was led by partner Conrado Tenaglia and associates Nilo Barredo and Matt Haist in New York.

Cable services provider Liberty Global has announced a deal to acquire Dutch cable company Ziggo for €6.9 billion (£5.7bn), in a cash and stock deal.

Latham & Watkins advised a consortium of banks, Credit Suisse, ABN AMRO, Coöperative Centrale Raiffeisen-Boerenleenbank, Crédit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Nomura, ING, JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Scotiabank and Société Générale, on the €964 million exchange offer and the €740 million tender offer related to Ziggo’s outstanding bonds.

Davis Polk advised RBC Capital Markets, LLC and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. as lead managers on an SEC-registered offering by Royal Bank of Canada of $1.5 billion aggregate principal amount of 1.2% senior notes due 2017 and $1 billion aggregate principal amount of senior floating-rate notes due 2017 under its $25 billion medium-term notes program.

Davis Polk advised Barclays Bank PLC, BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Citigroup Global Markets Inc., The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, KDB Asia Limited, Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc, Standard Chartered Bank and ANZ Securities, Inc. as underwriters in connection with an SEC-registered Schedule B debt offering by The Korea Development Bank of $750 million aggregate principal amount of its floating-rate notes due 2017 and $750 million aggregate principal amount of its 3.75% senior notes due 2024.