Oil and gas firms are struggling as the industry braces for fresh job cuts June 6, 2016 The UK oil and gas sector is planning further cost cutting to absorb the impact of lower oil prices, putting more jobs on the line. Almost half (43 per cent) of UK oil and gas firms intend to cut costs, new research from the Bank of Scotland has today revealed. Nearly a third (32 per cent) of businesses [...]
Mastercard snaps up Vocalink giving banks a £700m windfall July 21, 2016 Mastercard has snapped up a majority stake in Vocalink, the payments processor that probably handles your salary payment, in a £700m deal giving the biggest UK banks a windfall. The deal comes after the UK regulator urged banks to sell their stake in Vocalink, the system which governs trillions of payments in the UK, from bacs salaries to [...]
Betting odds indicate 62 per cent probability of Remain as banks plan to draft in senior traders ahead of referendum night volatility June 15, 2016 Betting odds indicate that there is now a 62 per cent probability of a Remain vote in next week's referendum, according to Betfair. The implied probability of an In vote fell on Tuesday to around 55 per cent but then recovered to around 62 per cent later in the day, the bookmaker said. The slight [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open August 2, 2016 Japan has launched a £34bn stimulus package, the Reserve Bank of Australia has chopped its its benchmark interest rate to a record low 1.5 per cent and Europe's banks are getting sold off. Here's what you need to know before the US market open at 2:30pm. The US pre-market is pointing down ahead of the open. The S&P is [...]
At the open: Strong FTSE 100 highlights wider Brexit fears July 6, 2016 Financial markets appear to be getting themselves into a bit of a pattern in the wake of the EU referendum. As sterling moves one way (down, inevitably), the FTSE 100 moves in the other. This morning is no different. After a small hiccup at the open, London's leading benchmark rose 0.4 per cent to 6,570, [...]
It’s eight years since the Lehman Brothers collapse. What’s changed? September 15, 2016 Eight years ago today US banking giant Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy. This was an unprecedented event in the modern financial world and it sent shock waves through global markets. We're still recovering from some of them. The bank's collapse has now entered the vocabulary as a term for when an industry has a potentially catastrophic moment. It is used again. And again. And again. And again (maybe it [...]
As a beleaguered Deutsche Bank faces a $14bn fine, Angela Merkel has ruled out state aid, but could a bailout be on the cards? September 27, 2016 Recent discussion of possible European bank bailouts has focused on Italy. Saddled with €360bn of souring loans and enfeebled by a stagnant, over-regulated economy, a number of Italian lenders face a very real risk of insolvency. In July, the country’s third largest, Monte dei Paschi di Siena, failed a stress test set by the European Central [...]
EU gives thumbs up to government guarantees for Italian bank support scheme June 30, 2016 The European Commission has extended a lifeline to Italy's struggling banks, by granting a guarantee scheme. The scheme will allow Italy to use government guarantees to create a precautionary liquidity support programme for banks in need, although it only applies to institutions which are solvent and will only be valid until the end of the year. According [...]
At the close: Calm before the storm for FTSE 100 and sterling June 21, 2016 Referendum news was – unsurprisingly – talk of the town today, though there was no repeat of the violent volatility witnessed on the financial markets in recent days. The FTSE 100 extended its winning run, shaking off losses at the start of the session to close up 0.4 per cent at 6,226. Meanwhile, after a [...]
Royal Bank of Scotland share price dips as government raises £2bn through share sale August 4, 2015 Shares in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) were down 1.4 per cent at 332.7p in the first minutes of trading, after the government initiated its first major sale of shares since it took a stake in the bank in 2008. UK Financial Investments, the government's investment arm, said it had raised more than £2bn through [...]