When the People's Republic of China decided 20 years ago to start issuing eurobonds, it ran into an embarrassing diplomatic hitch. Before the UK government would let Beijing sell debt in London, it insisted that China first settle its outstanding pre-war claims with British investors.

After protracted wrangling, China finally caved in: in 1987, it quietly paid a £20m ($36.4m) lump sum to compensate Britons who had lost their assets when China's Communists took power ranging from defaulted sovereign bonds to debentures on the pre-war Shanghai cricket club.