Europe was the initial base for Barclays Capital but since its inception, it has expanded to the Americas and Asia Pacific. However, Barclays Capital has continued with strong growth and frequent success in the UK and continental Europe. The firm has employed over 1,000 in the past two years in Europe and now stands at over 5,500 employees in the UK and Europe.

In the rapidly evolving market for European corporate bonds, Barclays Capital was the leading arranger in the first half of 2006, supporting innovative developments such as the expansion of the market for corporate hybrids. Market leading transactions include:

• The highly successful €1.06bn hybrid for Germany’s Linde in July which became the first European company to return to the hybrid market.
• The €4bn two-tranche deal for Telefonica. This was the largest transaction ever launched by the Spanish telecommunications company, and represented the first stage of the bond market refinancing of the Jumbo facility it raised the previous year in support of its acquisition of the UK’s o2.

In continuing its growth, Barclays Capital joined with Absa in 2006 to form a solid partnership established in South Africa. It is the joining of Barclays Capital's extensive global network and Absa's expertise with the local markets. The union and collaborative effort was made with the ambitions to be the leading investment bank in South Africa. No other foreign or domestic bank in South Africa can offer what it can. It draws on the best of both Absa and Barclays Capital and is an important step in achieving the goal of becoming the leading investment bank in South Africa.

Barclays Capital continues to exceed expectations in the market as evidenced by the numerous awards it wins. In 2006, it was named European Bond House of the Decade and Leveraged Finance House of the Year by Financial News. It also won The Banker's Bank of the Year for Covered Bonds award. Barclays Capital has been awarded Fund-Linked House of the Year in 2006 by Derivatives Week.