insto - Australian financial markets

NAB is facing a consumer backlash in the UK as its banking units, Yorkshire and Clydesdale Banks, have asked mortgage holders to make up the difference on payments incorrectly calculated since 2005 due to a computer glitch. An undercharging in interest since 2005 has affected 18,000 customers whose mortgages did not amortise correctly. The banks want to increase monthly payments for half the customers by at least 25 pounds a month, rising to 300 pounds a month for others.

Asian buyers continued to wade into the Australian market last week, spending more than $3.5 billion on assets in the coal, sugar and logistics industries. Singapore's Wilmar Group outbid Chinese bidder Bright Food with a $1.75 billion offer for CSR's sugar business, while Thai miner Banpu bi $2 billion for Centennial Coal. These deals follow the $580 million Korea's Kepco spent on coal projects recently, and China Merchants $675 million acquisition of wood pallet supplier Loscam.

Australian M&A volumes are down 41 percent for the first half of 2010, according to Dealogic, while global volumes rose 7 percent. In the thin local market, Macquarie Group is ranked number one for M&A among investment banks, thanks to the Telstra/NBN deal, a deal which also helped UBS and Goldman Sachs improve their rankings. Bank of America Merrill Lynch was number one until the NBN deal was announced.

Macquarie Group has taken a controlling stake in Sydney-based property funds management and research group Rismark International. Macquarie has declined to reveal the price paid for 53 percent of Rismark, purchased through Macquarie Funds Group. Macquarie executive director Rowan Ross has been appointed chairman of Rismark.

German construction group Bilfinger Berger has taken the plunge, announcing plans to list its Australian businesses under the new name of Valemus. The IPO could raise up to $1.4 billion, making it the largest on the ASX since the Myer raising late last year. Investment banks including Goldman Sachs, Macquarie Capital, Deutsche, RBS, CommSec and law firm Clayton Utz will share an estimated $57 million in fees from the float.

Australian hedge fund Basis Capital has joined the queue in taking legal action against Goldman Sachs, with a $1.5 billion legal action pending over the fund’s investment in a toxic mortgage linked security. Former Fairfax chief Fred Hilmer, the Myer Family and Westpac board member Stuart Hornery are among the investors who lost out in the so called “Timberwolf” transaction which saw the Basis Yield Alpha Fund invest in collateralized debt obligations packaged and sold by Goldman.

Investment banking and corporate advisers are expected to reap $186 million over the next year from the asset sales being conducted by the Queensland Government. Merrill Lynch, Rothschild and RBS form the core team, backed up by Freehills, KPMG, Minter Ellison, Allens Arthur Robinson and Clayton Utz. The first piece of the sell-off is the proposed float of the Queensland Rail assets. Joint lead managers for that sale are Credit Suisse, UBS, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and RBS.