LONDON - At the 17th annual Thomson Reuters International Financing Review (IFR) awards gala dinner on Wednesday, 18 January £1.26m was pledged to Save the Children, the global charitable organisation providing relief to some of the world's most vulnerable children. Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, President of Save the Children, attended the prestigious event to present Rich Ricci, Co-Chief Executive of Barclays Capital, with the coveted "Bank of the Year Award" for 2011.  This night's total takes the cumulative fundraising figure from the annual awards ceremony to over £20million.

During the evening's proceedings, senior representatives of the world's leading investment banks pledged money to Save the Children via an interactive charity bidding board. Barclays Capital topped the list of contributors with a phenomenal bid of £600,000.  

Justin Forsyth, Chief Executive of Save the Children, said: "The generosity of guests at the IFR Awards has been fantastic. It's inspiring to see that despite our tough economic climate, people are still deeply moved by the plight of children around the world and are prepared to dig deep in order to save children's lives. This money will have a real impact in our ambition to help save 15 million children's lives by 2015."

The dinner, held in the Great Room of London's Grosvenor House Hotel, and attended by over 800 senior investment bankers, was organised by IFR, the world's most authoritative source of capital markets intelligence. The IFR event is recognised as the key awards ceremony for global financiers and is Save the Children's largest single annual fundraiser.

"I never cease to be amazed by the remarkable generosity of the international capital markets community at the IFR Awards dinner. In an exceptionally difficult period for the industry, this astonishing generosity is particularly appreciated. The banks and individuals who donated should know that the funds raised are making a genuine difference to the lives of thousands of vulnerable children throughout the world. The £1.26m raised on the night takes our running total to more than £20m since inception, an extraordinary achievement.

"This year's event was the 17th annual IFR Awards dinner and I'm delighted that its success continues unabated. Once again, we had a full house and the dinner continues to be a marquee event in the capital markets calendar. I wish all market participants well in the year ahead," said Keith Mullin, Editor-at-Large of IFR.

IFR award winners for 2011 include:

  • Bank of the Year - Barclays Capital
  • Bond House - Deutsche Bank
  • Equity House - Morgan Stanley
  • Loan House - Barclays Capital
  • Securitisation House - Royal Bank of Scotland
  • Derivatives House - Barclays Capital
  • Restructuring Adviser - Houlihan Lokey
  • Emerging Markets Bond House - Deutsche Bank
  • Issuer of the Year - UK Debt Management Office

A full list of the 2011 winners can be viewed here

Notes to Editors

About IFR Awards
This is the 37th anniversary of IFR, the global capital markets publication published by Thomson Reuters. The Awards, which began over 20 years ago, have become a benchmark for outstanding performance in the industry, and are presented each year at the IFR Awards Gala Dinner.

The IFR Awards are selected by IFR's expert capital markets journalists. Starting in October, the journalists start an exhausting round of interviews with hundreds of market participants. These meetings give an opportunity for capital markets professionals to stake their claim to individual awards and to give their views on the performance of their peers. They also give the reporters the chance to gauge the market's thoughts on the most important transactions of the year. In addition, the IFR team takes soundings from treasurers and investors before deciding on a shortlist in each award category. The final decision is then made by the senior IFR editorial team.

Save the Children
Save the Children works in more than 120 countries including the UK. We save children's lives. We fight for their rights. We help them fulfil their potential. For more information visit

About IFR
IFR is the world's leading source of international capital markets intelligence. Published weekly in print and on the web, IFR provides in-depth coverage of developments in global financing markets, including analysis of all international bond, syndicated loan, leveraged finance, high-yield debt, emerging market, equity and convertible issues, as well as developments in the derivatives market. It is read by all major banks, brokers, investors, corporate and government borrowers.

About Thomson Reuters
Thomson Reuters is the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals. The firm combines industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, healthcare and science and media markets, powered by the world's most trusted news organization. With headquarters in New York and major operations in London and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs more than 55,000 people and operates in over 100 countries. Thomson Reuters shares are listed on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.  For more information, go to .