Ackman vs Icahn: click through for the CNBC video, also with bonus #WheninFinance take. Present at the creation, pari passu edition: Holdouts" opposition papers in the Argentine pari passu saga had just landed at pixel time on Friday. Joseph gives us some context on where the litigation is headed as it's going by fast. Living wills: US regulators have warned banks not to assume that countries will work together to avoid the catastrophic failure of a financial group. The sequester looms: The $1.2tn in automatic spending cuts that US President Barack Obama once promised to avert are looking increasingly likely to occur because of entrenched politics in Washington, threatening a shock to confidence in the US economy. The budgetary mechanism takes effect on March 1 and slashes the Pentagon's budget by $600bn over 10 years while cutting discretionary spending for government programmes by another $600bn. BofA derivatives shift: Bank of America has begun moving more than $50bn of derivatives business out of its Dublin-based operation and into its UK subsidiary, according to people close to the operation. MPS bailout: The Bank of Italy has approved the issue of €3.9bn in bailout bonds to Monte dei Paschi di Siena, raising the prospect that the contentious rescue of the country's third-largest bank by assets will be made before national elections next month. CLO reboot: Bankers in Europe are testing the water with new variations of a type of structured finance product that boomed until the subprime crisis, as they seek to take advantage of strong investor demand for high-yielding assets. Barclays and Credit Suisse are both preparing collateralised loan obligations for investment groups Pramerica and Cairn Capital, said sources close to the deals. Top automakers: Toyota regained its top spot from General Motors in 2012, when measured by the number of vehicles sold. The Japanese company sold 9.75 million vehicles to GM's 9.29 million. Markets: European and US stocks are sitting near recent highs as a jump in China's corporate profits supports confidence in the global economic recovery. Monday's overall market moves are mixed and mild, however - with Asia-Pacific bourses delivering a muddled message - suggesting many traders are reluctant to force the bullish trend given the extent of recent "risk" assets gains.