Asia Weekly — Venezuela shock, HKT, SP Group return to market

Richard Macauley

9 January 2026•2 min read

Geopolitical calculus

The US’ shock capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro last week led not only to discussions about Washington’s projection of its power but also of Beijing’s ability to do so. Commentary pages have debated what — if anything — the US operation might mean for China regarding its intentions for Taiwan.

This week, 9fin heard from Natixis senior economist Gary Ng and Strategy Risks CEO and founder Isaac Stone Fish, on what such action in Taiwan might mean for Asia’s debt markets.

Unlike Venezuela, Taiwan and its position in global supply chains can’t be swapped out or worked around in any realistic time frame, Stone Fish told 9fin. At least, “not without breaking things.”

HKT hybrid draws strong demand

HKT joined a rush of deals in the first full week back following the Christmas and New Year holidays. Parent CAS Holding issued $675m PNC5.25 subordinated notes at a yield of 6.25% on Tuesday, and which jumped in the secondary market the following day.

Ahead of time, 9fin’s analysis pointed to healthy liquidity — but also flagged the potential need to raise cash again soon due to looming maturities.

SP Group returns to market

Indian conglomerate Shapoorji Pallonji Group raised INR 16.09bn ($179m) in December, through rupee-denominated bonds from investors including Farallon Capital, Canyon Partners and Deutsche Bank.

The NCDs are structured as zero-coupon instruments and carry an implied yield of 18.75%, according to a term sheet.

As 9fin reported in October, SP Group is in the process of raising up to INR 220bn ($2.5bn) through new NCDs to refinance INR 143bn of bonds issued by Goswami Infratech, which are set to mature on 30 April 2026.