Visa ups bid for payment network Earthport to £247m in race with Mastercard February 8, 2019 Visa has increased its bid for UK payment company Earthport to around £247m as the race with Mastercard intensifies. Last month, Mastercard offered around £233m for the assets but Visa has now trumped that with its latest offer of 37p per share, 23 per cent more than its original bid. Earthport's shares have grown by [...]
Nationwide profits fall as it warns IT investment will continue to weigh down earnings February 8, 2019 Profits fell in Nationwide’s third quarter as the building society was hit by a £167m write-off charge as well as an ongoing technology investment, it revealed today, warning profit pressure will remain in the fourth quarter. The figures Pre-tax profits dropped a staggering 20 per cent year on year to £703m for the last three [...]
Corbyn allies join protest at Bank of England demanding transfer of gold to Maduro regime February 7, 2019 Two of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's most prominent allies joined a protest outside the Bank of England today, demanding that it release over £1bn worth of gold to the regime of Venezuela’s socialist strongman Nicolas Maduro. Members of Maduro's regime have laid claim to the country's gold reserves held at the Bank. Former Mayor of [...]
Societe Generale to cut €500m from investment bank despite profits boost as market volatility dents performance February 7, 2019 Societe Generale will aim to cut €500m (£437m) from its investment banking division after lowering its 2020 targets in the wake of tough market conditions. The French bank revised down its return on tangible equity targets for 2020 to 9-10 per cent from a previous 11.5 per cent. Read more: BNP Paribas cuts targets for [...]
Bank of England slashes UK growth forecasts amid Brexit uncertainties and global slowdown February 7, 2019 The Bank of England today decided to leave interest rates unchanged as expected, but slashed UK growth forecasts as Brexit uncertainties mount. The bank's monetary policy committee (MPC), which last raised rates to 0.75 per cent in August last year, unanimously voted to hold interest rates for a fourth consecutive meeting. Read more: How will the [...]
Audit watchdog ‘whitewashed’ my HBOS evidence, says whistleblower February 6, 2019 The UK audit watchdog has been accused of brushing-off a whistleblower who claimed HBOS had understated loan-loss provisions in its 2007 accounts. An MP described the handling of the case as “astounding”. Rob Kennedy, a former employee in the lender’s corporate division, was part of the team that worked directly to calculate the provision and [...]
RBS shareholders approve scheme to buy shares back from government February 6, 2019 Royal Bank of Scotland shareholders have agreed to a plan that allows it to buy up to £1.5bn worth of shares from the government, hours after Labour said it would halt such a move if it came to power. At a general meeting, 98.7 per cent of investors backed the proposal designed to speed up [...]
Noel Edmonds’ lawyer to take on Lloyds Banking Group over Bristol allegations February 6, 2019 Noel Edmonds’ lawyer Jonathan Coad is set to open a new front in his battle against Lloyds Banking Group. Coad tweeted today that he has been instructed by a “lady who is a victim of Lloyds Bristol”. Speaking to City PM Coad said: “I have spoken to a number of people who are victims of [...]
ING profits dented by money laundering scandal but Dutch bank ends year with a flourish February 6, 2019 Dutch bank ING saw its full year profits dented by a costly money laundering scandal but ended 2018 with better-than-expected earnings in the fourth quarter. The financial services group reported net profit of €4.7bn (£4.13bn) for the year, a 4.1 per cent increase on 2017, despite paying €775m to settle a court case after admitting [...]
Former Barclays boss Bob Diamond steps down as chairman of Atlas Mara amid strategic review February 6, 2019 Former Barclays boss Bob Diamond has stepped down as chairman of Atlas Mara as the pan-African financial group launches a strategic review to improve performance. Diamond, the firm’s co-founder, will retreat to the role of non-executive director, further scaling back his involvement. Read more: Former Barclays boss Bob Diamond says banks need to take more [...]
