RBS and Lloyds must relocate if Scots vote yes March 24, 2014 ROYAL Bank of Scotland and Lloyds would be forced to move their headquarters to the UK if Scotland votes to become independent from the UK, a new report has claimed. The research, by Professor Leslie Young, also claims that the UK Treasury’s stance on an independent Scottish economy is “the reverse of the truth”. The [...]
Aldermore names Glyn Jones chair March 28, 2014 Challenger bank Aldermore yesterday named former Coutts and Standard Chartered banker Glyn Jones as its new chairman. Aldermore was founded in 2009 and has established itself as one of the more credible newcomers taking on high street players. Jones fills a void left after David Arculus stepped down as Aldermore chairman in July, leaving director [...]
Shaftesbury announces £135m loan with Canada Life Investments April 22, 2014 West end landlord Shaftesbury has announced a £135m 15-year loan with Canada Life Investments (CLI) and completion of refinancing with Lloyds Banking Group. The loan is set to be repayable in full maturity in May 2029, and has been secured on properties held in a subsidiary company. The deal will have a fixed interest rate [...]
From Greece to Scotland via BT and EE: What got us talking this week February 6, 2015 It was all Greek to us this week Specifically, Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, who visited London as part of a Europe-wide charm offensive to support his plan for solving the small matter of the country's giant debt. Free market think tank Adam Smith Institute gave its backing to his debt restructuring [...]
Banks and energy firms fear for independent Scotland’s stability February 5, 2014 FINANCE and energy firms make up a major part of the Scots economy but will be among the hardest hit by independence, business secretary Vince Cable warned yesterday. The minister said bank RBS would “inevitably” move its headquarters to London if union was ended. “If you were managing RBS, you almost certainly want to be in [...]
RBS snaps up Ewen Stevenson as new CFO April 4, 2014 The Royal Bank of Scotland has appointed Ewen Stevenson as the company's new chief finance officer (CFO). Stevenson joins the state-backed bank from Credit Suisse where he is co-head of EMEA Investment Banking and its Global Financial Institutions Group, Investment Banking division. Ross McEwan, RBS chief executive, commented on the appointment: I am pleased to [...]
Happy Christmas to all our readers – Editor’s Letter December 22, 2014 So we come to the end of another year, and 2014 has been eventful enough, dominated politically in the UK by the debate over the future of Scotland and elsewhere by Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Oil prices have crashed, causing major implications for producers and consumers alike and in some countries interest rates have [...]
London Report: Financial and mining stocks weigh on FTSE March 28, 2014 BRITAIN’S top stock index fell yesterday, with miners leading the retreat on lingering concerns their earnings could be hurt by weaker metals prices following an economic slowdown in China and improving supplies. Banks also lost ground after the Federal Reserve blocked the US units of Royal Bank of Scotland and HSBC from paying higher dividends [...]
Scotland could keep the pound – but at the cost of any monetary independence September 15, 2014 THE CONTROVERSY over the monetary and currency arrangements of an independent Scotland has dominated the referendum campaign, after Alex Salmond’s initial desire for a formal currency union with the rest of the UK was ruled out by all the other major political parties. Salmond has since strongly indicated that Scotland could use sterling unilaterally – [...]
Lloyds caps mortgages May 20, 2014 LLOYDS Bank yesterday announced a shock clampdown on home lending designed to tackle the London housing boom, saying applications for mortgages worth over £500,000 would now be subject to a new income test. Borrowers will now only be able to get their hands on over half a million pounds from the UK’s biggest mortgage lender [...]