Without an eye on social value, Europe risks losing the global fintech race November 30, 2020 Europe has been left behind in Big Tech. The scene is overwhelmingly dominated by US companies, with China potentially coming up from the rear. The question is whether Europe has the potential to avoid the same fate in digital finance — a sector that is likely to play a big role in future economic development. [...]
BoE’s Haldane sees inflation risks as economies bounce back November 29, 2020 Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane said inflation could rise by more than expected as progress on Covid-19 vaccines and huge amounts of stimulus raised the chances of a swift economic bounce-back. “As the economic recovery gathers pace next year, it will be important central banks remain squarely focussed on their core medium-term price stability mandates,” Haldane said in a speech [...]
HSBC mulls exit from US retail banking November 29, 2020 HSBC is considering a total exit from retail banking in the US after narrowing the options for how to improve performance at its struggling North America business. Senior management at HSBC aim to present the plan to the bank’s board in the coming weeks, as HSBC seeks to move resources from the US and toward [...]
Starling says IPO ‘in our sights’ amid reported big-bank interest November 28, 2020 Challenger bank Starling has said it has its sights set on an IPO after a report said City giants Lloyds and JP Morgan were interested in the company. JP Morgan has talked about snapping up Starling, while Lloyds is interested in its technology, The Times reported. However, Starling today said: “An IPO is still in [...]
Spanish banks say adios to merger talks November 27, 2020 Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) and Banco de Sabadell have ended potential merger talks without having reached a deal. “Banco Sabadell informs that the board of directors has decided to terminate the above mentioned discussions, because the parties have not achieved an agreement on the exchange ratio of both entities,” Sabadell said in a statement. [...]
ECB says banks still vulnerable to corporate coronavirus debt November 25, 2020 The Eurozone’s banks are likely to have to put aside more cash to pay for loan losses as the recovery from the coronavirus crisis enters a new stage, the European Central Bank (ECB) has said. “Bank profitability is expected to remain weak. Provisions have increased but look optimistic in some cases,” said Luis de Guindos, [...]
EU watchdog: Commission failed in vetting Blackrock climate contract November 25, 2020 The EU watchdog has given the European Commission a slap on the wrist for failing to weigh up possible conflicts of interest when it hired Blackrock to help look into green banking rules. EU ombudsman Emily O’Reilly asked the Commission – the executive branch of the bloc – to consider toughening up its conflict of [...]
94% of men and 93% of women working in financial services state their job can be done via flexible working November 24, 2020 | City Talk New research commissioned by Women in Banking & Finance (WIBF), shows that 94% of males and 93% of females currently working in financial and professional state their job can be done flexibly in terms of location without impacting their performance. This compares to 54% and 75% in responses of past employees. The survey-based research is [...]
UK banks are yet to maximise the full benefits of the cloud November 24, 2020 | City Talk In a year that demonstrated the importance of operational resilience, major UK banks have migrated less than 10% of business infrastructure onto the public cloud. The move to the cloud also requires a mindset shift for many. In the banking sector, AI and Blockchain have long been regarded as the technologies set to change the [...]
‘Break’ London banks and give us access to data: fintech firms tell FCA November 24, 2020 A coalition of primarily London startups is calling on UK regulators to end the dominance of banking institutions over the use of consumer data as it would increase competition in the savings, credit, mortgages and pensions markets. The Coalition for a Digital Economy (Coadec), an advocacy group that represent a number of UK fintech firms [...]
