Insurers say extreme weather and slump are a vicious circle January 8, 2013 THE PROLONGED economic downturn is eating into the capacity of countries to deal with extreme weather and environmental problems, which is in turn adding to business malaise, according to a report out yesterday. Difficult times in the world economy have driven money and attention away from abating climate change, and counteracting its harmful effects, the World [...]
Zurich chief calls for tax breaks for long-term care January 7, 2013 THE GOVERNMENT will not be able to meet the crushing cost of long-term care for the elderly and must introduce tax breaks to avert the looming crisis, according to one of the UK’s leading insurers. Gary Shaughnessy, chief executive of Zurich’s UK life insurance business, told City A.M. that demand for long-term care is set [...]
UBS facing new Hong Kong rate fiddling probe December 20, 2012 SWISS bank UBS is now facing an investigation from the authorities in Hong Kong, just a day after it settled major interest rate-fixing charges with regulators in the UK and the US. The bank was fined £940m this week, after regulators found evidence that key interbank interest rates were being fixed by the bank’s staff, [...]
Banking shares rise on FTSE 100 as UBS fined $1.5bn December 19, 2012 The blue chip index moved towards nine-month highs this morning, as optimism of a US budget deal boosted the FTSE 100. Financial shares were in the spotlight, as Swiss bank UBS agreed a $1.5bn (£940m) fine for manipulating the Libor benchmark. The redress was in line with expectations, and UBS shares were trading around 0.3 [...]
Asian growth makes up for woe in Europe at Innovation Group December 5, 2012 INNOVATION GROUP, the business software and processes firm, reported a 10 per cent rise in annual revenues yesterday, as it said growth in Asia had made up for tough conditions in southern Europe and the US. The company, which provides outsourcing services to the insurance, automotive and property industries, has expanded its reach via multiple acquisitions. [...]
London living standards the best in the UK December 4, 2012 LONDON’S standard of living is higher than in any other city in the UK, data out yesterday showed, and its infrastructure is among the best in the world. London has the 20th best standard of living in Europe, and the 38th best in the world, Mercer judged in a report out yesterday. The report considered the [...]
UBS fined £30m by watchdog over £1.4bn rogue trader loss November 26, 2012 SWISS bank UBS, which last week saw former trader Kweku Adoboli jailed for a £1.4bn trading fraud, was fined £29.7m by regulators yesterday for failing to prevent the scandal. The Zurich based bank, which lost its chief executive Oswald Gruebel over the trading debacle, managed to reduce an original fine of £42.4m the Financial Services [...]
Who’s switching jobs November 26, 2012 Alvarez & Marsal The professional services firm has appointed Faisal Galaria as a senior director. He was previously vice president of Spotify, where he was responsible for mergers & acquisitions and strategic partnerships. Galaria has also held senior roles at Skype and eBay. Pinsent Masons Jonathan Beastall has been appointed to the law firm’s corporate [...]
Guilty: Adoboli gets seven years for trading fraud November 20, 2012 ROGUE former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli, whose unauthorised trades lost the Swiss bank $2.3bn (£1.4bn), was yesterday jailed for seven years after being convicted of one of the biggest frauds in British history. Adoboli, once pegged as a rising star on the Exchange Traded Fund desk at the bank’s Finsbury Avenue offices, was found guilty [...]
Credit Suisse to dismantle asset management arm November 20, 2012 Credit Suisse this morning announced it would dismantle its asset management division, and combine it with its private banking arm into a new division. The Zurich-based bank’s new private banking and wealth management division will be led by current head Hans-Ulrich Meister and asset management head Robert Shafir. Meister will run private banking in Switzerland, [...]