Most bank branches could close over the next 10 to 20 years September 11, 2014 Most bank branches could close over the next 10 to 20 years, shaking up the whole landscape of British banking – and the high street – industry analysts predicted yesterday. In a decade, a bank could serve the whole UK with just 500 branches, Deutsche Bank analysts forecast. Right now Lloyds Banking Group has more [...]
Europe’s biggest banks are still facing dozens more giant fines September 11, 2014 EUROPE’S biggest banks could face as many as 63 more giant fines between them over the coming years as regulators continue to comb through their misdeeds, analysts at Berenberg warned yesterday. There are 15 major issues still outstanding which could lead to fines of more than €100m (£80m) each, per bank. Those investigations include Libor [...]
Inside Track: City contingency planning for Yes vote long overdue September 10, 2014 YESTERDAY’S desperate round of campaigning in Scotland by the main Westminster party leaders might have offered a boost – but not to those they wanted to vote No to independence. In the City, the reality check of a Yes vote being a genuine prospect is triggering contingency planning that should have been underway months ago. [...]
Analysts to the fore in big sectorial shakeups September 9, 2014 ANALYST of the year The role of the analyst has become increasingly important at such an uncertain time in the economy, when everyone is looking for guidance. With the UK retail sector in turmoil over the decline of Sainsbury’s, Morrison’s, Waitrose and especially Tesco – caused mainly by the rise of the German discounters – their views [...]
BBC Trust nominee grilled by MPs September 9, 2014 RONA Fairhead, the preferred candidate for chairmanship of the BBC Trust, faced a grilling by MPs yesterday morning, including questions over her role during the HSBC Mexico money laundering scandal and her Pearson pay off. Fairhead was the chair of HSBC’s risk committee at the time of the case, which resulted in the bank being [...]
BBC Trust candidate Fairhead quizzed over HSBC money laundering scandal September 9, 2014 Rona Fairhead, the preferred candidate for chairmanship of the BBC Trust, faced a grilling by MPs this morning, including questions over her role during the HSBC Mexico money laundering scandal and her Pearson pay off. Fairhead was the chair of HSBC's risk committee at the time of the case, which resulted in the bank [...]
How do Islamic bonds work without interest? By generating profit September 9, 2014 Goldman Sachs announced last week that it is planning to issue its first Islamic bond, and has already set the ball rolling by meeting potential backers in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. With a wealth of potential investors to tap into in the Middle East, it is no surprise that Goldman has taken [...]
Bolt out of blue for Schroders as fund star quits September 8, 2014 Funds group Schroders yesterday lost one of its top performing fund managers after she unexpectedly resigned from the group. The FTSE 100 fund giant, the UK’s second-biggest independent manager, said Julie Dean will step down from the group and hand over the reins of her £2.2bn UK fund immediately. Schroders unveiled fund manager Matt Hudson [...]
Europe vows to stop bank bonus cap avoidance September 7, 2014 The European Union’s chief financial services officer pledged last night to stop banks from sidestepping the bloc’s cap on bonuses. Michel Barnier said that the EU’s probe into allowances that some banks have started to pay staff must wrap up by the end of September. Already banks including Barclays, HSBC and RBS have implemented systems [...]
EU bonus cap: UK’s challenge reaches final stage in court September 7, 2014 The UK's challenge to the European Union's bonus cap plan will be heard in the European Court of Justice tomorrow. This will be the final stage in the case opened by the UK Treasury last September. The new rule, which is supposed to be imposed on all bonuses awarded from 2014 onwards, caps bankers' [...]