📰 Weekly Roundup (21-27 July 2026): IWIRC x Acrostics Asia on Wednesday | Bank Indonesia Governor Steps Down | Southeast Asia Radar #6 | Bright Spot #21
Weekly newsletter
Dear Valued Contacts,
IWIRC x Acrostics Asia: Southeast Asia Restructuring Evolution is happening this Wednesday, 29 July 2026. Thanks to those who’ve signed up – looking forward to seeing you in person or virtually! For those who haven’t registered yet, there’s still time to join us.
🚨 Newsflash: Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo Steps Down (27 July 2026)
Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo has stepped down from his role, according to media reports. Destry Damayanti, a senior deputy governor at the central bank, was appointed as interim governor.
Nearly five months ago, I wrote that Indonesia has been borrowing more to fund President Prabowo Subianto’s spending plans and the cost of servicing this growing debt is a key factor to watch for investors.
Indonesia has built its reserves over the years to withstand capital outflows, but a stampede for the exit can erode these buffers faster than they can be replenished. I also flagged last year that the wave of layoffs in the labour-intensive manufacturing sector risked dampening household spending.
🛜 Southeast Asia Radar #6 (24 July 2026)
Note: Click the link for the full Radar.
The top news in Singapore’s restructuring and insolvency scene was the Court of Appeal’s decision to strike out a USD 2.6 billion claim brought by Hin Leong Trading’s liquidators against its former auditor Deloitte & Touche.
Acting for the auditor, WongPartnership argued that the losses flowed from the management’s own trading decisions and adverse market movements, rather than from the audit. “To impose liability for such losses would impermissibly transform auditors into insurers of a company’s trading fortunes and guarantors against market conditions.”
Around the Region
Indonesia: Danantara hired banks to arrange a potential sale of 20-year and 30-year USD bonds; PEFINDO indicator signals increasing pressure on Indonesian corporate credit quality.
Vietnam: Vietnam’s developers reportedly raised more than USD 2.3 billion via private bond placements in June; Novaland is lending more than VND 2.05 trillion (USD 82 million) to two subsidiaries.
Malaysia: Malaysia raised USD 1.5 billion from a global Sukuk issuance with record-low spreads; The country’s retirement fund KWAP is pursuing a recovery of its investment in failed Indonesian startup eFishery.
Philippines: Chinese loans to the Philippines reportedly stayed resilient despite their maritime row; San Miguel Corp. said the Energy Regulatory Commission had rejected the implementation of a power supply deal with Meralco.
People to Watch
Singapore’s Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon is set to retire on 26 February 2027, with Court of Appeal Judge Sushil Nair to be appointed the fifth Chief Justice.
☀️ Bright Spot #21 (26 July 2026)
Note: Click the link for the full Bright Spot.
APAC’s First GPU Syndicated Loan: The Taiwan unit of US-based GMI Cloud has become the first borrower from Asia Pacific to bring GPU-backed financing into syndicated loans, helped by commitments from industry titan Nvidia, IFR reported.
Australian Data Centre Bond: CDC has priced the first Australian investment-grade senior secured data centre bond, joint lead manager HSBC said.
Mongolia’s SOE Reform: Mongolia has taken a concrete step toward reforming its SOEs, signing an MOU with Franklin Templeton, according to Capital Markets Mongolia.
On the Move
Julia Hoggett, CEO of London Stock Exchange, and Susan Langley, the Lady Mayor of London, welcomed Madam Thao Nguyen Thi Phuong, Chairwoman of Sovico Group, and senior leaders from HDBank, VietJet Air, Vikki Digital Bank and HD Securities to London.
Trivia Mania
Bright Spot is an Acrostics Asia feature that has evolved the most since inception. I first created it as a collection of good news because a friend said she was depressed by the sea of negative headlines on defaults, disputes and debt restructurings.
Then I modified it to track deal flows and people’s moves in the industry to spotlight potential opportunities for readers. Another friend suggested that I add a trivia section, so Bright Spot has now expanded to include Trivia Mania.
Do check out the first trivia on the origins of the word “ketchup”, which apparently turned out to be Hokkien.
Acrostics Asia is an independent credit intelligence provider that connects the dots across Asian sovereigns, private credit and restructurings.