Amigo Loans cancels dividend over £35m complaints hit as sale falls through June 8, 2020 Amigo Loans has said talks with a buyer have fallen through “given the current market environment”, as it warned of a £35m hit from a backlog of customer complaints. The loan provider revealed last week that the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is investigating it over its creditworthiness assessment process and oversight. Amigo reached a voluntary [...]
HSBC warns of reprisals in China if UK bans Huawei equipment June 7, 2020 HSBC has reportedly warned Downing Street against a ban on Huawei in 5G telecoms networks, in a further escalation of tensions between Britain and China. The bank’s chairman Mark Tucker made private representations to the Prime Minister’s advisers, according to the Sunday Telegraph. HSBC reportedly claimed it could face reprisals in China if Huawei was [...]
HSBC and Standard Chartered slammed for supporting China’s Hong Kong security law June 4, 2020 HSBC and Standard Chartered have today been critcised for their support of China’s new security law for Hong Kong. HSBC’s Asia-Pacific chief executive Peter Wong signed a petition backing the law, the bank said. HSBC said in a statement: “We respect and support laws and regulations that will enable Hong Kong to recover and rebuild [...]
Bank of England asks banks for pandemic loan loss estimates June 4, 2020 The Bank of England has asked banks to provide information on their likely loan losses due to the coronavirus pandemic, its deputy governor Sam Woods said today. The Bank’s Prudential Regulation Authority will gather the data ahead of banks’ second quarter earnings to compare the timing and amount of losses with those it modelled last [...]
Hong Kong: HSBC and Stanchart shares rise after backing China security law June 4, 2020 HSBC and Stanchart have both seen their shares rise after backing controversial new security laws China plans to impose on Hong Kong, despite the UK’s opposition. Both banks have said the law could uphold stability in the long-term in Hong Kong, where protests have sparked again despite the risk of coronavirus over China’s encroachment. HSBC [...]
Coronavirus loans: George Osborne calls for future government ‘debt forgiveness’ programme June 3, 2020 The government should implement a future “debt forgiveness” programme for companies borrowing through its coroanvirus loan schemes, according to former chancellor George Osborne. Osborne said small and micro businesses “who are engines of growth” should have their debts written off in several years’ time if they are still carrying debt burdens from the government’s emergency [...]
Contactless payments soar over £900m in UK lockdown June 3, 2020 Barclaycard today revealed it has processed over 25m contactless payments above £30 since the new £45 limit was introduced, with a total value of over £900m. As of April 1, when the spending cap was raised, the average of these payments has been £36.29, according to data released by the brand. The limit was raised [...]
UK bank shares rise on optimism about lockdown easing June 3, 2020 Shares in major UK banks rose today on increased optimism about lockdown measures easing globally. HSBC shares rose 2.2 per cent to 393p, Lloyds Banking Group shares rose nearly 4.7 per cent to 33.4p, Barclays shares rose nearly 2.5 per cent to 122p, Royal Bank of Scotland shares rose 2.6 per cent to 123p and [...]
BoE’s Andrew Bailey tells UK banks to up preparations for no-deal Brexit June 3, 2020 Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey has reportedly told UK banks to ramp up their preparations for a no-deal Brexit as the UK sticks to its target to strike a deal before the end of the year. Bailey told British lenders to accelerate their planning for a no-deal Brexit scenario in a call yesterday, according [...]
Bank of England governor Bailey to be interview by London Capital & Finance inquiry June 2, 2020 The Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey is to be interviewed as part of an inquiry into how regulators supervised collapsed mini bond firm London Capital & Finance (LCF), the investigations chair dame Elizabeth Gloster said today. LCF went into administration in early 2019 with 11,600 investors losing up to £237m. LCF was regulated by [...]
