Progress has finally been made over Sir Fred Goodwin’s pension. The former Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) chief executive has agreed to a reduced payout in the face of legal action threatened by the now 70% state-owned bank. According to a BBC report, Sir Fred will take a £200,000 a year cut, which together with [...]
Russian investment bank Troika Dialog and its 35-strong research analyst team has been named as Russia’s leading brokerage by Thomson Reuters Extel Focus Russia Survey 2009. Last year the firm hit second spot in the survey, and this year four of the Top Ten analysts belong to the bank. Mikhail Stiskin, chemicals specialist, is the [...]
The sad state of the UK savings market has been exposed in the Nationwide Savings Index. According to the building society, 26% of Britons currently save nothing at all and 60% think they are putting aside less then they need, compared with 56% six months ago. However, while consumers are more pessimistic about how regularly [...]
The gender bias of insolvency statistics is changing, with more women making up the numbers of young people entering bankruptcy. According to accountancy firm, Wilkins Kennedy, bankruptcies in England and Wales among the under 24s have risen by 10% over the past five years. However, last year women made up 55% of the numbers, compared [...]
Capital One is withdrawing from the savings market from next month. The online bank and credit card provider is proposing to transfer existing savings accounts to the Skipton Building Society on 27 July, although the move still needs regulatory approval. Customers can expect further details by letter in the days ahead and will apparently notice [...]
The Governor of the Bank of England says he needs more powers if the Bank is to tackle its new role of overseeing financial stability. At odds with Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling’s address at last night’s Mansion House dinner, Mervyn King described the Bank’s current position as that of a church with a [...]
Deutsche Bank has named Colin Grassie as the firm’s new chief executive officer for the United Kingdom. He formerly held the post of Deutsche Bank’s Asia Pacific (ex-Japan) CEO, where he ran the firm’s regional management and strategic business development. In his new position Grassie will be responsible for managing government and regulator relations, as [...]
Governor Alan Bollard of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand has stated that the world economic downturn may be drawing near to an end. Speaking today, Governor Bollard credited the fiscal and monetary stimuli with helping to shore up the domestic activity in the New Zealand economy. Echoing a forecast made during the last interest [...]
The Institute of Chartered Accounts in England and Wales (ICAEW) is urging the Financial Services Authority (FSA) not to confuse “principles-based” with “light touch” regulation. In an interview with the Financial Times on the Turner Review of global banking regulation, ICAEW chief executive, Michael Izza, argued that principles-based regulation is more effective amid changing circumstances. [...]
Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling has set out his position on regulation and made it clear that he blames bank bosses ahead of regulators for the credit crisis. Speaking to the BBC prior to delivering his annual Mansion House speech later today, Mr Darling backed the much criticised tripartite system of regulation that comprises [...]
Global investment firm William Blair & Company has announced the appointment of Andy Kaye as head of Asia. He brings with him 14 years of experience as an investment banker during which time he occupied management and banking posts with CIBC World Markets, Robertson Stephens and more recently his own boutique. Kaye is well-acquainted with [...]
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has been assessing the future impact of Personal Accounts and has concluded they will have a “relatively small” affect on the UK’s pension shortfall. The Government-backed scheme, which is aimed at people who don’t belong to employers’ schemes, is due to be introduced in 2012. It is aimed at [...]
Encore Bank, N.A., a subsidiary of Encore Bancshares, Inc., has named Preston Moore as the firm’s new chief executive officer and president. Before joining Encore Bank he worked with the Investment Division at Amegy Bank of Texas as executive VP and MD. Chairman James S. D’Agostino, Jr. has expressed his excitement at the appointment, and [...]
The Bank of Japan’s Monetary Policy Board has unanimously elected to leave the country’s interest rate unchanged at 0.1%. In a statement, the Bank of Japan stated that the nation’s economic situation has ceased its downward spiral, with fragile domestic demand being caused by income/employment difficulties. However, recently Japan has enjoyed a rise in exports, [...]
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) has published its response to the Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) discussion paper on banking regulation. The paper was circulated earlier this year to accompany the Turner Review, which recommends steps that the international community needs to take to enhance regulatory standards. While the BBA says it welcomes the FSA’s broad [...]
Russian investment bank Troika Dialog has named Paolo Zaniboni as the firm’s new head of its London office. Zaniboni will also take up the position of head of Research, a post which will make him responsible for a broadening of the firm’s product range as well as acquiring awards from Extel Survey and RBC Rating [...]
