See us after class: Disappointing back to school week for FTSE 100 as retailers drag it lower September 9, 2016 The FTSE 100 had a decidedly wobbly start to the school year, finishing the first full week of September 1.7 per cent lower than it started. Having come tantalisingly close to the 7,000 mark last week, it finished today at 6,776.95 points, 1.2 per cent down. "You’d be forgiven for falling asleep this afternoon," complained SpreadEx financial analyst [...]
Direct Line abandons plan to offload part of its pension scheme August 16, 2016 Direct Line has abandoned the potential offload of part of its pension scheme, following the conclusion of an internal review. It was part of a defined benefit (DB) scheme — in which monthly payouts are linked to an employee's final salary — going back to when the insurer was wholly owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland. Direct Line [...]
Worldpay shrugs off Brexit concerns as bumper earnings send shares higher August 9, 2016 Worldpay shares have nudged last year's peak today after the company reported better-than-expected earnings and declared a maiden interim dividend of 0.65p per share. The UK's largest payments processor reported a rise in first-half underlying earnings and pre-tax profit. It follows a disappointing first full year for the firm as a listed company. For the six months to [...]
Total lockdown: NatWest freezes Russian TV station’s accounts October 18, 2016 The UK is facing a new round of tit-for-tat reprisals from Russia following a shock move by NatWest to freeze the bank accounts of Kremlin-funded news channel RT. British journalists could be among those targeted by the Kremlin in the aftermath of the decision to close UK accounts being used by the broadcaster, previously called Russia Today. RT revealed [...]
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"] [...]
This blockchain startup just hired a top chief from RBS’s investment bank August 2, 2016 The blockchain startup founded by a well known former JP Morgan executive has hired another top financier, the latest in a string of hires as the company expands. Carol Mathis, the chief operating officer of Royal Bank of Scotland's investment banking arm has joined Blythe Masters' Digital Asset Holdings, the fintech firm backed by Santander, JP Morgan [...]
New fintech strategy group will help Scotland capitalise on sector growth August 14, 2016 A new national fintech strategy group has been launched by Scottish Financial Enterprise (SFE) in Edinburgh, to help Scotland capitalise on the growth within the sector. The SFE Fintech Strategy Group has brought together over 30 leading figures from the world of fintech in Scotland and met for the first time this May in Scotland's [...]
Shares in European lenders finish lower after Deutsche Bank is asked to pay $14bn over mortgage-backed securities claims September 16, 2016 Shares in British banks finished at the bottom of the FTSE 100 after Deutsche Bank after it admitted it had been asked to pay a massive $14bn (£10.6bn) fine by the US Department of Justice (DoJ). Shares in the lender were down 8.5 per cent at €11.99, its worst day of trading since the day after the Brexit vote, after it said in [...]
RBS calls time on Williams & Glyn IPO as it opens discussions with rival bidders August 5, 2016 The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has ditched its plans to spin off Williams & Glyn as a standalone bank and will instead sell the division directly to one of its rivals The government-owned lender, which reported a £2bn loss for the first half of the year, blamed IT difficulties for the hold-up, saying it was proving [...]
Gordon Brown has a third “patriotic” option in the debate over a second Scottish independence referendum March 18, 2017 Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has an alternative to full-blown independence from the UK, as the debate over a second Scottish referendum ramps up. During a speech in Fife, Brown suggested giving Holyrood vast new powers, including the responsibility of signing treaties with other European and setting VAT – as long as it stays in the UK. Read [...]