Barclays’ bailout talks peppered with sexist language, court hears July 23, 2020 Barclays bankers seeking credit crisis-era emergency funding used sexist and disparaging language when discussing the businesswoman whose firm led a £3.25bn investment in the bank in 2008, according to court documents. Stephen Jones, a former Barclays banker who resigned as CEO of British bank lobby group UK Finance in June over historic remarks about Amanda [...]
High standards will keep London competitive, incoming FCA chief says July 22, 2020 Maintaining high regulatory standards rather than having a “competitiveness” mandate is the best way to preserve Canada’s status as a dynamic financial centre, the Financial Conduct Authority’s incoming chief said today. Britain will no longer have to comply with European Union rules after December when transition arrangements that followed Brexit in January [...]
Exclusive: MPs ask banks for clarity on state aid rules and coronavirus loans July 22, 2020 A group of MPs and Lords has written to lenders to try to ensure they take into account changes to EU state aid rules that could boost the UK’s coronavirus loan scheme, amid confusion about the alterations. It came as business group UK Hospitality urged the government to take the lead and make sure the [...]
‘Historic’ day as RBS formally changes name to Natwest July 22, 2020 RBS has formally changed its name to Natwest, removing Scotland from the bank’s parent company for the first time since it was founded. The group will remain headquartered in Edinburgh, and the name change will not affect RBS bank branches. The intention to change the name was first announced in February when it reported its [...]
Close Brothers’ banking division takes a hit amid pandemic July 22, 2020 Close Brothers Group’s banking division has taken a hit due to the pandemic, as its loan book reflected lower new business volumes. However, securities division Winterflood helped to offset some of the impact of coronavirus due to significantly higher trading, the group said in a scheduled pre-close trading update. The figures In the group’s banking [...]
RBS tells 50,000 employees to work from home until next year July 21, 2020 Royal Bank of Scotland has reportedly told more than 50,000 staff to work from home until 2021. It comes after Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the government’s advice to work from home would be dropped next month in a bid to stimulate the economy. He said employers would have “more discretion” about where staff should [...]
Global banks ‘scrutinise Hong Kong clients for pro-democracy ties’ July 20, 2020 Global banks are examining whether their clients in Hong Kong have ties to the city’s pro-democracy movement, sources have warned Six people with knowledge of the matter said banks are scrutinising clients in an attempt to avoid getting caught in the crosshairs of China’s new national security law. Bankers at Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.S), [...]
Dividend recovery ‘could take six years’ after record-breaking fall July 20, 2020 Shareholder payouts could take up to six years to recover to pre-coronavirus pandemic levels, the latest research has shown, after companies were forced to slash dividends during the crisis. Dividends were down £22bn to £16.1bn in the second quarter of the year, a record fall of 57.2 per cent year on year. Underlying dividends, excluding [...]
More SMEs eligible for coronavirus loans under rule change July 17, 2020 An abrupt U-turn in lending rules means SMEs banks previously rejected for coronavirus loans may now be able to get the vital cash they need to survive. Small businesses with fewer than 50 staff and less than £9m in annual turnover will no longer be considered “undertakings in difficulty” under EU state aid rules amid [...]
Blackrock profit trumps estimates as Wall Street bounces back from coronavirus July 17, 2020 Blackrock ended the quarter with $7.32 trillion in assets under management, up from $6.84 trillion a year earlier as profit beat predictions, it said today. The S&P 500 rose 20 per cent in the second quarter after falling by that amount in the first three months of 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic slammed the economy. [...]
