Happy Monday for financials as US data lift big cap shares February 1, 2010 Britain’s top share index closed 1.1 per cent higher yesterday, helped by upbeat US manufacturing data, with banks and commodity stocks topping the list of gainers. The FTSE 100 closed up 58.89 points at 5,247.41, having dipped to 5,163.57 earlier in the session. The index ended 0.8 per cent higher on Friday. Experts said the [...]
Three banks get EU approval November 18, 2009 Plans by three major European banks to sell chunks of their operations in return for state aid were approved by EU authorities yesterday, marking the latest regulatory-enforced financial break-ups. In reviewing a raft of bank bailouts across the 27 European Union member states, the European Commission has forced lenders to divest assets, close branches, reduce [...]
Goldman and SEC open talks over a settlement May 9, 2010 GOLDMAN Sachs has commenced negotiations with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in order to try and reach an out-of-court settlement of the agency’s civil fraud action against the bank, it emerged over the weekend. Lawyers for Goldman met last week with SEC officials to open discussions over a settlement, in a sign that [...]
BP’s fall takes fuel out of oil stocks but FTSE rises higher February 2, 2010 Britain’s top shares closed higher for the third straight session yesterday as miners and banks extended the previous day’s gains but BP dragged energy stocks lower with fourth-quarter results that missed expectations. The FTSE 100 was up 35.90 points, or 0.7 per cent at 5,283.31, after closing 1.1 per cent higher on Monday. Miners added [...]
Shareholders back Lloyds in cash call December 14, 2009 LLOYDS Banking Group has hailed its £13.5bn rights issue as a success after shareholders took up more than 95 per cent of the shares on offer. The move came after a rights issue in June last year saw 13 per cent of shares on offer ignored by investors. The latest issue was part of a [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 17, 2010 Quayle Munro The boutique merchant banking group has appointed Andrew Adams, pictured, and Robert Cormie as executive directors. Adams has been a managing director at the firm since 2008, having spent ten years at The Van Tulleken Company prior to its acquisition by Quayle Munro. Cormie also became a managing director in 2008. Prior to [...]
Lloyds and Och Ziff hedge fund plan to sell their Vue stake April 25, 2010 LLOYDS, the UK state-backed bank, and US hedge fund Och Ziff are considering selling their 48 per cent holding in Vue Enertainment. The cinema chain is part of Lloyd’s integrated finance portfolio, made up of stakes in 43 companies, which it inherited when it bought HBOS in 2008. Lloyds plans to sell the portfolio to [...]
Defensive shares lift FTSE but banks and miners weak January 26, 2010 BRITAIN’S leading share index added 0.3 per cent yesterday, as support for defensive issues, and a modest early rally on Wall Street, offset weakness in heavyweight miners and banks. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was up 16.54 points at 5,276.85, snapping a four-session losing streak, having earlier reached an intraday low for the [...]
C Suisse to pay £329m fine to US December 15, 2009 CREDIT Suisse shocked the financial markets last night after it revealed it expected to pay US authorities a hefty $536m (£329m) following a probe into its financial dealings with Iran. The Swiss bank said the settlement would likely result in a SFr445m charge this quarter, or a net impact of SFr360m after tax. Manhattan District [...]
GOLDMAN CASE STRIKES FEAR INTO HEARTS OF PRUDENT COMPETITORS July 8, 2010 THE SEC’S fraud case against Goldman might have proved an almighty headache for the bank’s own staff, but at least it’s spawned a valuable lesson for rivals. Citi took the opportunity to send employees a missive in the wake of the accusations, imperiously titled “Think Before You Write: Avoiding Improper Electronic Communication”. The 11-page illustrated [...]