Xavier Rolet hits back at junior bankers complaining about working hours August 2, 2021 The former boss of the London Stock Exchange Group, Xavier Rolet, has accused junior bankers who routinely work 100-hour weeks of moaning about conditions. A survey taken by 13 new recruits at Goldman Sachs revealed that surging workloads have taken a toll on mental health during the pandemic. Pleas by junior bankers to work just [...]
Woodford investors to wait until 2022 at earliest for last £124m August 2, 2021 Investors stuck in Neil Woodford’s collapsed flagship fund will have to wait at least until 2022 to claw back the £124m remaining in the fund, it was revealed today. In an update for shareholders, fund administrator Link said that it was “hoped that the sale of the remaining assets will be concluded in 2022”. Shareholders [...]
Climate change activists occupy Zurich’s financial district August 2, 2021 Police this morning began clearing a group of Climate Strike activists occupying the heart of Zurich’s financial district. Around 200 activists from the Climate Strike Switzerland group gathered outside the UBS and Credit Suisse headquarters to protest the financing of environmentally damaging fossil fuel projects. According to “Rise Up for Change”, a group bringing together [...]
First-half profits double at HSBC as bank reinstates dividend August 2, 2021 Banking behemoth HSBC appears to have recovered from the ravages of Covid-19, with first-half profits more than doubling on last year. The Asia-focussed bank recorded pre-tax profits of $10.8bn for the first six months of the year, some $6.5bn ahead of last year’s equivalent. The bank said all of its regions were profitable, with HSBC’s [...]
City watchdog launches money laundering probe into Monzo July 30, 2021 The City watchdog is in the early stages of a probe into British digital bank Monzo over possible money laundering activity. Monzo announced the potential probe alongside its annual results today, which showed the challenger bank swung to a £130m loss, up from £114m last year. Read more: City watchdog slashes fundraising threshold to attract [...]
NatWest notches up £2.5bn in ‘resilient’ first half, as lending rises July 30, 2021 NatWest roped in some 2.5bn in operating profit before tax in the past six months, swinging from a loss of £770m in the first half of 2020. The British bank’s net lending rose by £2.2bn to £362.7bn in the six months to 30 June, while UK and RBSI retail and commercial businesses pushed lending to [...]
The FCA is revamping itself to be more “assertive” July 29, 2021 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has proposed changes to streamline its decision-making processes, in a bid to make it more efficient. The financial watchdog said discussions have been held about moving some decision-making responsibility from its Regulatory Decisions Committee (RDC) to its Authorisations, Supervision and Enforcement divisions instead, in an announcement today. The RDC, a committee of [...]
HSBC accused of ‘blatant’ forex fraud by former client July 29, 2021 HSBC currency traders in London have been accused of routinely fronting run client orders for extra profits as part of a “blatant and indefensible” fraud by investment manager ECU lawyers. The closing statement comments by lawyers for ECU, which is suing HSBC for currency trades made over 15 years ago, marked the end of a [...]
Credit Suisse Archegos probe reveals serious management shortfalls July 29, 2021 A lack of accountability and weak internal controls to monitor risk drove Credit Suisse’s $5.5bn loss on investment fund Archegos, according to a damning review published on Thursday. Law firm Paul Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrisson released the findings of an investigation into the lender’s investment in Archegos. It blamed the losses on poor risk [...]
Lloyds banking group lifts forecasts as UK economic outlook brightens July 29, 2021 Lloyds banking group has lifted its forecast for the year after the UK’s economic outlook has brightened in the past six months amid its vaccine rollout. Statutory profit before tax hit £3.9bn in the six months to 30 June, a ‘significant’ increase from the first half of 2020. The banking group has confirmed it bought [...]