Finance: How it made civilization possible September 22, 2017 What is finance, where does it come from, and why does it matter? William N. Goetzmann, of the Yale School of Management, addressed these questions in his presentation at the 62nd Annual Financial Analysts Seminar. He led participants on a tour through financial history, illuminating distinctive artefacts that demonstrate the critical role finance has [...]
This is how City analysts reacted to RBS’ results February 24, 2017 Royal Bank of Scotland reported its ninth consecutive annual loss this morning, pushing shares down two per cent. The lender's losses widened to £6.96bn in 2016, compared with £1.98bn the year before, largely due to litigation and conduct costs. This is how the analysts reacted: Groundhog Day RBS chief exec Ross McEwan "must feel that he is [...]
This is how City analysts reacted to Barclays’ results February 23, 2017 Another day, another big bank reports its numbers – this time, it's Barclays' turn. Shares in the the lender went up by more than three per cent after it reported pre-tax profits almost tripled last year, growing by a massive 182 per cent to hit £3.2bn – but the bank still missed expectations. Here's how [...]
City Moves for 3 November 2016 | Who’s switching jobs November 3, 2016 Palatine Private Equity Palatine Private Equity has appointed Zoe Clements as a partner in the London team as the firm looks to back businesses that have a focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles within their business models. Zoe joins from Electra Partners where she played a leading role in their investment in Photobox [...]
Persistent headaches: Five problems facing RBS chief exec Ross McEwan October 28, 2016 Ross McEwan may have been pleasantly surprised as he peaked through his fingers to see what had happened to the Royal Bank of Scotland's (RBS) share price this morning. Read more: RBS shares jump up and down to the noise of loss-making quarter Unfortunately for the chief exec of RBS, an initial jump of five per cent wobbled [...]
RBS shares tumble after another “noisy” loss-making quarter October 28, 2016 The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) reported an attributable loss of £469m for the third quarter of 2016 after being hit with nearly £900m of litigation and restructuring costs. Shares jumped five per cent in morning trading before falling back – it was 1.6 per cent lower, at 193.3p, in lunchtime trading [stockChart code="RBS" date="2016-10-28 09:21"] [...]
How to break into hard-to-access funds October 18, 2016 Now more than ever, portfolio diversification is critical. Recent market upheaval following the Brexit vote has begged the question: how diverse should a portfolio be? What should this look like in practice? And given that funds tend to be the most straightforward way for individuals to invest, what alternatives are there to mainstream quoted equity [...]
Deutsche Bank US share price plunges after reports suggest funds have lost faith in the lender September 29, 2016 Troubled financial giant Deutsche Bank saw its shares plummet again in New York last night, dragging Wall Street into the red. The German lender's New York-listed stock dived after reports emerged that several key funds have slashed their exposure to the bank. The news sent shivers through banking sector equity markets, with the S&P 500's financial [...]
Is Deutsche Bank the world’s greatest contrarian trade? October 3, 2016 Who'd invest in a German bank? A roller-coaster two weeks for Deutsche Bank, the country’s largest lender by assets, has only reinforced the volatile position the sector now finds itself in. It’s highly likely that the top dogs at Deutsche will sweet-talk US regulators into reducing their $14bn settlement, but the bank is by no means [...]
PCP Capital Partners alleges Barclays loaned $3bn (£2.3bn) to Qatar to fund purchase of bank’s shares September 1, 2016 An investor is alleging Barclays handed Qatar a $3bn (£2.3bn) loan so it could purchase the bank's shares. PCP Capital Partners has filed documents containing the allegation at the High Court. According to documents seen by Sky News, which first reported the story today, the alleged loan was made in 2008, at a time when the [...]