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The FSB’s total loss-absorbing capacity rules are still in their infancy, but market participants are worried

Besnik Duraj For more than two decades, the Albanian electricity power sector has been facing critical financial and operational problems, as a result of a number of issues and ensuing chain reactions. The most characteristic example is end consumers who do not pay the power distributors, who in turn do not pay the transmission operators, and so forth up to the power producing companies. With the entire electricity power system in a debt downward spiral, a major objective of the Albanian Government for 2015 is the reformation of the power sector by drafting a new bill. The new draft bill was approved during the Council of Ministers meeting on January 14 2015 and sent to the Parliament for debate and approval. Apart from financial goals, the said bill aims at fulfilling Albania's obligations in the context of the Energy Community Treaty. It seeks to harmonise the local power sector legislation with EU directives and rules, with a particular focus on the Third Energy Package for gas and electricity markets.

ETMFs open the door to fancier baskets The success of investment management firm Eaton Vance's exchange traded mutual funds (ETMF) could lead to new US products that also attempt to mirror more than one fund type. ETMFs combine the intraday trading ability of an exchange traded fund (ETF) with net asset value (NAV) pricing used in mutual funds. This offers actively-managed ETFs a way to protect their proprietary indexes.

Aung Naing Oo, director-general of DICA, reveals the next FDI developments in the frontier jurisdiction

Brazil’s new law adapts the instrument to local financing needs, but reveals the challenges of making covered bonds work in emerging markets

Iñigo de Luisa After several years of economic turmoil, Spain's GDP forecasts anticipate a two to three percent increase for the next two years. This is probably the best performance of all EU members. Consumption rates are improving and foreign investors' interest is high. However, it is true that the unemployment rate remains too high (above 20%) and this year of elections (regional, municipal and Spanish government) could have an unexpected impact on investors' attitudes. It is clear that the appetite of international investors, distressed and special situations funds and debt trade desks will continue in 2015. They have previously revolved around the usual well-known corporate names, but this should change and new names will come into action.

Some banks’ internal risk calculations are equally unreliable Europe's policymakers have been focussed on breaking the link between banks and sovereigns since the eurozone crisis in 2012, when Greece defaulted on its debt. However, under EU rules, banks remain free to automatically rate all debt issued by the bloc's 28 member states as risk free, allowing them to avoid capital charges and understate the riskiness of their assets. This broad loophole applies irrespective of whether those bonds are issued by the government of Germany, or the government of Spain, Italy or Ireland.

Clifford Chance partners Debashis Dey and Stuart Ure discuss why the $500 million green sukuk was a game-changer for the fledgling market

Isil Ökten Aslihan Özbey Akbank TAS has established a covered bond programme in an aggregate principal amount of up to €1 billion ($1.1 billion), which is the first ever mortgage-backed bond programme in Turkey. The first mortgage covered bond programme in Turkey was established on December 23 2014 on the approval of the base prospectus by the Central Bank of Ireland, after a challenging process. This programme comes after many years of hard work by the legislator, the issuers and the arrangers. Numerous changes have been made to the legislation to enable the first issue, and it would still benefit from further clarifications.

The lighter side of the past month in the world of financial law