Fraud squad eyes foreign exchange fiddling investigation as Libor accused head for court July 21, 2014 FOREIGN exchange traders are facing a criminal probe as the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is set to open an investigation into the market, it emerged yesterday. Dozens of bank traders have been suspended or fired in relation to firms’ internal investigations into the market. The claims centre around allegations that traders would manipulate the flow [...]
Financial Stability Board wants central banks to take over forex benchmarks July 16, 2014 Central banks could take over publishing key foreign exchange benchmarks in a bid to clean up the tarnished market, global watchdog the Financial Stability Board (FSB) said yesterday. It has been investigating the industry since February following a series of claims that traders tried to fiddle the benchmarks. The international body, headed by Bank of [...]
PZ Cussons says profits hurt by £12m hit from falling currencies June 12, 2014 PZ CUSSONS said it would report a six per cent rise in profits this year, despite taking a £12m hit from falling currencies. The company behind St Tropez tanning lotion and Imperial Leather soap said pre-tax profits for the year to 31 May could have been 17 per cent higher had it not been for [...]
Novartis cheers copycat delays October 22, 2013 SWISS drugmaker Novartis raised its full-year sales and profit forecasts for a second quarter in a row yesterday, as it benefited from delays to a cheap, copycat competitor to one of its best-selling drugs, blood pressure pill Diovan. Novartis’ net sales rose four per cent in the third quarter to $14.34bn. Core earnings per share [...]
Broker ICAP’s profits slashed by Libor fine November 13, 2013 PROFITS at ICAP fell by more than 40 per cent in the first half of the year, the broker reported yesterday, thanks to a £54m Libor fine. Pre-tax profit came in at £40m, down from £68m in the same six-month period of last year. But the underlying picture was stronger – operating profits increased six [...]
Swiss regulator launches investigation into possible currency manipulation October 4, 2013 The Swiss financial regulator FINMA is investigating several financial firms over possible manipulation of foreign exchange rates. In a press release the agency said: FINMA is currently conducting investigations into several Swiss financial institutions in connection with possible manipulation of foreign exchange markets. FINMA is coordinating closely with authorities in other countries as multiple banks [...]
Firms protest against bank ringfence plan October 28, 2013 LEADING British businesses have written to the government to oppose plans to make banks split their retail and investment banking arms, it was reported yesterday. The firms are believed to be concerned about the effect such a move will have on the availability of hedging products. Relevant legislation is currently in the final stages of [...]
Investment banks suffering as bond trading revenues fall again May 29, 2014 THE WORLD’S biggest banks are taking a beating from diving bond trading revenues, analysts at JP Morgan warned yesterday. Revenues in fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC) trading are set to fall by another 19 per cent in the second quarter compared with the first three months of the year. And compared with the same period [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 23 June 2014 June 23, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES FireChat app popular in Iraq A new chat app designed for use on planes and trains is soaring in popularity in Iraq, as users embrace a “private internet” where they can message each other without fear of the government shutting down access to the web. Created on an island in San Francisco Bay, [...]
Latin America prompts higher quarterly earnings for Colgate October 24, 2013 COLGATE-PALMOLIVE reported slightly higher third-quarter earnings yesterday as it spent more on advertising and posted strong sales growth in Latin America, yet failed to show robust growth at home. The toothpaste maker still expects its annual profit to rise 4.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent, assuming foreign exchange rates remain fairly stable. It is [...]