India’s Covid crisis makes Barclays and other banks to shift call centre operations back to UK May 3, 2021 Barclays has announced it will shift some of its Indian call centre operations back to the UK as staff in the South-Asian country are struggling to cope with the ongoing Covid-19 crisis. A range of other UK and US banks and companies are mulling to do the same, according to multiple media reports in India [...]
New Credit Suisse chair Horta-Osório says bank’s crisis is worst he’s seen May 1, 2021 New Credit Suisse chair António Horta-Osório has told investors the recent crisis at the bank is the worst he has seen in his career. Speaking at an annual meeting yesterday the former Lloyds boss told investors the situation at Credit Suisse was severe. “I have personally worked at and led several banks in different countries [...]
Junior bankers at HSBC set for pay rise in bid to tackle burnout April 30, 2021 HSBC will raise hire more junior bankers to share the workload and hike current employees’ pay in a bid to tackle burnout after a gruelling year. The bank will also shorten a four year associate programme for certain groups in Hong Kong, London and the US, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg. Associates [...]
Barclays profit more than doubles to £2.4bn, as it shifts call centres to UK from India April 30, 2021 Barclays’ profit more than doubled in the first quarter despite not releasing cash set aside to cover bad loans from the pandemic like its British rivals. The bank posted a pre-tax profit of £2.4bn for the first three months of the year, up from £923m in the same period a year earlier and beating an [...]
Bank of Ireland sees strong first quarter as capital rises and costs drop April 30, 2021 The Bank of Ireland has reported a strong income for the first quarter of this year today, noting limited impacts on customer loans from longer lockdowns in the Irish market. Ireland’s largest bank by assets enjoyed a stable net interest income throughout its multiple lockdowns, exceeding initial forecasts, as its capital levels rose and its [...]
How strong might the UK’s post-Covid economic recovery be? April 30, 2021 | City Talk It has been a tough start to the year for the UK. As lockdown restrictions continue to slowly ease, we examine the progress made in tackling the Covid-19 pandemic, and whether hopes for a strong economic recovery are well founded. Vaccines offered hope, speedy inoculation will solidify the recovery A year on from the start [...]
Barclays faces shareholder revolt over fossil fuel investments as AGM approaches April 29, 2021 Barclays is facing a second consecutive shareholder resolution concerning its position as Europe’s largest fossil fuel financier. Investors are increasingly drawing attention to the shareholder resolution due to be voted on at the bank’s Annual General Meeting next week, on Wednesday 5 May. A letter from investors with more than $4 trillion of funds urged [...]
The Evening Read: City veteran Gavin Rochussen on closing deals remotely April 29, 2021 In an exclusive interview, City A.M. sits down with Gavin Rochussen, the CEO of St. James’s-based Polar Capital, to talk all things asset management, how the pandemic has changed working practices, navigating acquisitions in lockdown and how culture is so important to success. You told me that Polar Capital is a boutique asset manager, but [...]
Deutsche Bank staff in the City set for three-day work from home week April 29, 2021 Deutsche Bank plans a post-pandemic policy for its City staff that allows them to work from home for up to three days a week. The implementation of the hybrid working model is part of a wider initiative to encourage flexible working at the German financial giant. “It’s a range of 40 per cent to 60 [...]
Standard Chartered profit soars to $1.4bn as Covid19 provisions to cover bad loans go unused April 29, 2021 Standard Chartered this morning posted a higher- than-expected 18 per cent jump in quarterly pre-tax profit, as the Asia-focused bank began recovering from the economic hit caused by the Covid19 pandemic. Pre-tax profit for the three months to 31 March was $1.4bn, up from $1.2bn a year earlier, and well ahead of the $1.08bn analysts had [...]