RBS investigates alleged overseas mortgage scam
by Gill Montia
Story link: RBS investigates alleged overseas mortgage scam
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has suspended two executives suspected of misdemeanours in its overseas mortgage department.
Both members of staff are alleged to have taken backhanders in return for referring UK borrowers to foreign estate agents, continuing their activities long after RBS was rescued by the Government.
According to The Daily Telegraph, mortgages were arranged for [...]
RBS forced to sell insurance businesses
by Gill Montia
Story link: RBS forced to sell insurance businesses
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is expected to sell its insurance businesses in efforts to placate the European Commission.
According to reports, the group’s Direct Line, Churchill and Green Flag units will all be auctioned.
The bank has so far received around £20 billion in taxpayers’ cash and has £325 billion lodged with the Treasury’s Asset Protection [...]
Halifax / Bank of Scotland retreat on overdraft charges
by Gill Montia
Story link: Halifax / Bank of Scotland retreat on overdraft charges
Consumer groups have succeeded in persuading Halifax / Bank of Scotland to make amendments to overdraft charges due to be introduced in December.
The banks recently announced that they would apply flat charges of £1 per day for agreed overdrafts of up to £2,500 and £2 a day for agreements over £2,500.
For those going into the [...]
Lloyds faces £2.5bn fee despite avoiding APS
by Gill Montia
Story link: Lloyds faces £2.5bn fee despite avoiding APS
Lloyds Banking Group is reported to be proposing to pay the Government £2.5 billion to avoid participation in the Treasury’s Asset Protection Scheme (APS).
The sum represents a fee for an implicit guarantee given for the £260 billion in bad loans that Lloyds originally said it would place in the APS, back in March.
According to Sky [...]
FSA extends remit to customer contact
by Gill Montia
Story link: FSA extends remit to customer contact
From 1st November, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) becomes responsible for regulating banks’ and building societies’ day-to-day contact with their customers.
The new remit covers everything from direct debits, payments, instant access and savings accounts through to unauthorised transactions and notification of interest rate changes.
According to the regulator, the new framework will deliver wide-ranging benefits for [...]
NAB sees net profits decline
by Richard Kilner
Story link: NAB sees net profits decline
National Australia Bank (NAB) has announced its quarterly results, including group revenue of $16.9bn, a rise of 9.7% made despite an economic backdrop of weakness.
Cash earnings declined compared to the same period in 2008 by 1.9% to $3.8bn, a fall attributed to an increased charge for bad debts, which rose by $2.3bn to $3.8bn.
However, underlying [...]
Barclays faces K1 hedge fund loss
by Gill Montia
Story link: Barclays faces K1 hedge fund loss
Barclays stands to make a loss in connection with German hedge fund, K1 Group.
Currently European authorities and the FBI are investigating the fund, which is suspected of having obtained loans from the bank’s BarCap investment unit, by deception.
JP Morgan Chase and BNP Paribas have also been named as potential victims, investors facing joint losses of [...]
New Zealand keeps rates at 2.5%
by Richard Kilner
Story link: New Zealand keeps rates at 2.5%
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has retained the Official Cash Rate (OCR) at 2.5%.
Governor Alan Bollard has welcomed indications that the New Zealand economy is once more growing, but warned that vulnerabilities remained and that growth would be gradual.
Credit growth remains weak, as does business spending, but government spending is helping to support the [...]
Deutsche Bank makes €1.4bn net income
by Richard Kilner
Story link: Deutsche Bank makes €1.4bn net income
Deutsche Bank has announced its financial results for the last nine months and Q3 of 2009.
The firm made net income of €1.4bn for the quarter, more than triple the €414m profit made in Q3 2008, and also a significant improvement on the €1.1bn net income recorded for the previous quarter.
The net income matches the forecast [...]
GMAC-RFC to repay millions to unfairly treated borrowers
by Gill Montia
Story link: GMAC-RFC to repay millions to unfairly treated borrowers
Sub-prime lender, GMAC-RFC, has been fined £2.8 million by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for failing to treat customers fairly.
The firm has also agreed redress of up to £7.7 million (plus interest) for over 46,000 of the firm’s mortgage customers.
In its investigations, the FSA found that between 31st October 2004 and 30th November 2008, a [...]
World First UK Ltd gains PI status from FSA
by Richard Kilner
Story link: World First UK Ltd gains PI status from FSA
Foreign exchange broker World First UK Ltd has become one of the first FSA-authorised Payment Institutions.
As a result the firm’s client funds will benefit from enhance security, protecting them completely from creditors.
The new PI status will become effective from 1 November, and comes as the UK enacts the EU Payment Services Directive.
Jonathan Quin, World First’s [...]
Santander Q3 profit level as Abbey surges ahead
by Gill Montia
Story link: Santander Q3 profit level as Abbey surges ahead
Banco Santander, which owns Abbey, Alliance & Leicester and Bradford & Bingley, has reported attributable profit of €2.2 billion for the third quarter of 2009.
The performance came in level with a year earlier, leaving the group on track to achieve its earnings target of €8.8 billion by the year end.
Provision for bad debt and impairments [...]
European Commission approves Northern Rock split
by Gill Montia
Story link: European Commission approves Northern Rock split
The European Commission has rubber stamped plans for Northern Rock to be split into one “good” and one “bad” bank.
Under the proposals, the nationalised lender’s retail deposits and sound loans will be bundled up for sale, free from government debt.
Meanwhile, the taxpayer will retain ownership of the balance of the business, which will no doubt [...]
Lazard announces Q3 profits
by Richard Kilner
Story link: Lazard announces Q3 profits
Lazard Ltd (NYSE: LAZ) has published its financial results for the most recent quarter and the last nine months.
The firm made net income of $52.5m, equating to $0.41 per diluted share, for the quarter, better than Q2 2009, but somewhat weaker than the $54.8m net income for Q3 2008.
For the last nine months the firm [...]
Nomura releases quarterly results
by Richard Kilner
Story link: Nomura releases quarterly results
Nomura Holdings has reported its financial results for the last quarter, which includes net revenue of 300bn yen, and pre-tax income of 27.3bn yen.
Net income attributable to Nomura stood at 27.7bn yen, marking the second successive quarter of profitability.
This compares very well with the net revenue of the previous quarter (198.4bn yen) and net [...]
Nationwide backs credit card review
by Richard Kilner
Story link: Nationwide backs credit card review
The Credit and Store Card Review, to be published by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), has been welcomed by the Nationwide Building Society.
The review calls for an end to the usage of adverse order of payments within the UK, which costs UK consumers around £500m per annum.
The US has already made moves [...]
Brewin Dolphin appoint Skelding
by Richard Kilner
Story link: Brewin Dolphin appoint Skelding
Independent private client investment manager Brewin Dolphin has recruited Steve Skelding as business development manager for South Wales.
Skelding began his career in financial services in 1990 with Eagle Star, with subsequent mergers leading it to become part of Zurich Financial Services.
In his new role with Brewin Dolphin, Skelding’s initial task will be to promote the [...]
UBS appoint Wealth Management Americas CEO
by Richard Kilner
Story link: UBS appoint Wealth Management Americas CEO
Swiss investment bank UBS has announced the appointment of Robert J. McCann as chief executive officer of UBS Wealth Management Americas.
He brings with him decades of banking experience, and spent more than a quarter of a century with Merrill Lynch, in a range of executive leadership positions.
He left Merrill Lynch in January, and last held [...]
UK banks sign up to new financial reporting regime
by Gill Montia
Story link: UK banks sign up to new financial reporting regime
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has announced that the major UK-headquartered banks have agreed to “a tough new code” for financial reporting disclosure.
The new regime forms part of proposals aimed at improving investor confidence and also makes it easier to compare and contrast banks’ performances.
According to the regulator, the UK’s major banks are [...]
Ministers consult on credit card reforms
by Gill Montia
Story link: Ministers consult on credit card reforms
The Government has begun a consultation period on proposals aimed at protecting consumers from exploitation by credit card companies.
Ministers want to see interest rate rises on existing debts banned, and an end to borrowing limits being raised without request.
Under the proposed new measures, minimum repayment regimes will be revised to ensure debts are cleared at [...]
