In its latest Quarterly Bulletin, the Bank of England outlines certain “innovative funding instruments” that are now being used by banks as alternatives to traditional methods of raising funds on the money markets. According to the Bank, so-called putable certificates of deposit (CDs) and extendible repos “differ in the maturity of the funding they provide, [...]
Activity in the UK financial services sector has increased for the fifth quarter in a row, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has reported. According to the latest CBI/PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Financial Services Survey, 37% of firms questioned said that business volumes had risen. However, despite registering the fastest rate of growth since June 2007, progress [...]
Some wealthy Britons who are, or have been, customers of HSBC’s Swiss division have received letters from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) warning that tax evasion can lead to a criminal conviction. According to a BBC report, following the theft of client details by a former HSBC employee, HMRC is in now in possession of [...]
Britons who don’t bank online are missing out on the best rates for financial products, according to new research by Which?. The consumer group’s investigations reveal that over the course of a year, online savers are better off than their branch-only peers, with the average rate for an in-branch instant-access savings account at 0.56%, or [...]
Michael Geoghegan, chief executive of UK banking giant HSBC, is to leave his post, according to the BBC. The state broadcaster has reported that Geoghegan is to be replaced by the current head of HSBC’s investment bank, Stuart Gulliver. In addition, the present chairman of HSBC, Stephen Green, is set to be succeed by Finance [...]
WestLB has announced that it is to sell WestLB International S.A., a subsidiary domiciled in Luxembourg, to DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale Luxembourg S.A., following the latter firm’s success in a competitive bidding process. The deal, to be completed on 1 January 2011, has been agreed between the two financial institutions but still requires the necessary regulatory [...]
ANZ has announced that Australia and New Zealand Bank (China) Company Limited (ANZ China), the firm’s locally incorporated subsidiary in China, will become established on 1 October. The announcement follows the green light given by the China Banking Regulatory Commission earlier this month. ANZ China is a wholly owned subsidiary, with Gilles Planté (CEO North [...]
Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) has been won emeafinance’s Best Local Bank in Kenya 2010 award. The award success is the third time in a row that the African banking giant has been recognised at the prestigious African Banking Awards. KCB will officially receive the award in December, during the third African Banking Charity Awards Dinner [...]
Latin American investment bank MBA Lazard has announced the appointment of Jaime Bermúdez Merizalde as president of MBA Lazard in Colombia. Bermúdez, who was most recently Colombia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, will assume his position with the bank with immediate effect. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2010, under President Alvaro [...]
Deutsche Bank has announced the appointment of Ashok Aram as chief executive officer of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), with immediate effect. Aram succeeds Henry Azzam, who vacates the role he has held since 2007 in order to become non-executive chairman of the MENA region. Aram becomes responsible for the MENA franchise across [...]
In the coming months the Boards of Management of BayernLB and WestLB are going to engage in an exploration regarding the possibility of a merger between the two banks. The exploratory process will include consideration of the theoretical joint bank’s funding, strategic position and the risks and opportunities such a merger would create. The discussions [...]
Lloyds Banking Group has announced that Group Chief Executive Eric Daniels has informed the board of his intention to retire in a year’s time. The banking giant’s board expressed gratitude for the advanced notice which will give the firm time for an extensive search to discover a suitable successor. The search for the next group [...]
Commerzbank has announced that it is to sell Brazilian subsidiary Dresdner Bank Brasil S.A. Banco Múltiplo to Canadian firm Scotiabank. The deal, the details of which are confidential, was signed today but remains subject to the relevant regulatory approvals. At the end of 2009 Banco Múltiplo, which specialises in investment banking, had 50 employees and [...]
Independent investment bank Greenhill & Co. Inc. has announced the appointment of Mark Bentley as a managing director in London. His primary role at Greenhill will be advising major European companies about mergers and acquisitions in the energy sector. Bentley brings 24 years of experience to Greenhill, including 11 years in investment banking, and has [...]
Merriman Curhan Ford Group, Inc. has announced that it is to be renamed Merriman Holdings, Inc. following shareholder approval. In addition, Merriman is appointing Jon Merriman and Ronald L. Chez as co-chairman of the board of directors. The former chairman of the board, John M. Thompson, joins the 10 man advisory board. Co-Chairman and Chief [...]
Financial firms that fall foul of Ofcom regulations by generating too many “silent calls” will shortly be facing a maximum fine of £2 million. MPs agreed to increase the penalty from £50,000 earlier this week, effective later this month. The vast majority of the calls are caused by automated calling systems used by call centres [...]
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand today elected to leave the nation’s Official Cash Rate (OCR) unchanged at 3%. The decision sees New Zealand join a long list of nations that have kept their interest rates unchanged, including the UK, Japan and Australia. Governor Alan Bollard explained that the rate had been kept on hold [...]
Goldman Sachs is being sued by three former women employees who are claiming gender discrimination. The legal representatives of Christina Chen-Oster, Lisa Parisi and Shanna Orlich have filed a law suit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. According to reports, the women claim that while working for the investment [...]
Two fraudsters who ran a plastic card factory yesterday received custodial sentences at Southward Crown Court. Gabriel Yew of Haringey, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud, supplying articles for use in fraud and money laundering, was sentenced to four years in prison. Cheng Chee Weng, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud and supplying [...]
Cattles has announced that negotiations with some of its bondholders have broken down. However, the firm and its advisers are continuing their discussions with representatives of certain key financial creditors, in the belief that the interests of all parties are best served by reaching an agreement. The sub-prime lender, which trades as Welcome Finance and [...]
