Hedge funds to negotiate hard with the Co-op July 21, 2013 THE CO-OP Bank is preparing for a showdown with distressed debt investors as hedge funds build up major stakes in the troubled lender’s bonds, it emerged over the weekend. Junior bondholders will see their holdings written down as part of the bank’s plan to plug a £1.5bn capital hole, with roughly one-third of that coming [...]
Taxman ramps up search for international bank information July 21, 2013 HER MAJESTY’S Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is increasingly asking overseas governments for information on accounts held outside of the UK. The tax collectors are making more requests for information to overseas territories and crown dependencies of the UK, with 26 per cent more made in 2012 than 2011. The figure has more than doubled since [...]
Benchmarks on the front foot with code of conduct for indices July 21, 2013 FINANCIAL index providers today stuck back at the wave of regulatory interest in the sector by proposing their own code of conduct to improve behaviour in the sector. Indices have been under intense scrutiny since the Libor fiddling scandal emerged last summer, with officials becoming increasingly involved in setting standards for how they operate. Today [...]
Archbishop speaks out on banker bashing July 21, 2013 THE Archbishop of Canterbury has described the naming and shaming of bankers after the financial crisis as “lynch mobbish”. Speaking on BBC Radio 4, The Most Reverend Justin Welby, a former oil executive, said he sympathised with former bankers while hearing evidence as a member of the Banking Standards Commission.
Portugal fails to agree plan to hit bailout targets July 21, 2013 PORTUGAL’S President Anibal Cavaco Silva said last night he had decided to keep the centre-right coalition government at the helm to help end a weeks-old political crisis and keep an international bailout on track. The crisis threatened to derail Lisbon’s planned exit from the EU/IMF bailout. “As the national salvation compromise was impossible to achieve, [...]
Cameron unveils fresh pledge to block child pornography online July 21, 2013 DAVID Cameron will this morning pledge a crackdown on a range of sexually violent online material. In a major speech the Prime Minister will say that online pornography “is corroding childhood”. He will pledge to outlaw videos that depict simulated rape, demand Google blocks searches for child abuse images, call for on-screen warnings so that [...]
European Union lobbyists clash after Japan call July 21, 2013 RIVAL campaign groups clashed yesterday after the Japanese government warned the UK not to quit the EU. Rory Broomfield of Better Off Out hit back at Japan, saying that free trade would continue unhindered even were the UK to leave the EU. He said: “It’s free trade – not membership – that promotes productivity, jobs [...]
Optical Express founder to take on debts to RBS July 21, 2013 THE FOUNDER of Optical Express has stepped in to save the firm from its biggest creditor. David Moulsdale is today expected to take on the firm’s debts to Royal Bank of Scotland, and has also agreed to “inject significant working capital” to ensure the company’s survival. Optical Express, which has 93 stores and 54 consultation [...]
Another senior level departure at online fashion retailer Asos July 21, 2013 ASOS’s human resources director Michelle Emmerson has stepped down, in the latest high profile departure at the online fashion giant. Her departure comes less than a week after Kate Bostock, the former head of clothing at Marks & Spencer, announced that she was to leave the company just seven months into the job. Asos has [...]
Boris backs Medical City at Euston July 21, 2013 BORIS Johnson has given his backing to plans for a new medical research hub based around Euston Road. The Mayor of London will on Thursday submit a bid for £1m of funding to London Enterprise Partnership for the project, which will attempt to replicate the success of East London’s Tech City start-up culture in the [...]
