Swedbank chair steps down immediately amid money laundering probe April 5, 2019 The chair of under-fire Swedbank has decided to leave the role with immediate effect amid money laundering allegations directed against the bank. Read more: Swedbank chief executive fired amid money laundering claims Lars Idermark has stepped down as authorities probe allegations of money laundering in the Baltics. “Following recent strong debate about Swedbank and questions [...]
European investment banking fees plunge in bleak first quarter as M&A hits six-year low April 4, 2019 European investment banking fees have plunged 25 per cent to $4.9bn (£3.75bn) as the first quarter of the year looks set to be even bleaker than originally feared. The value of M&A deal involving any European companies also fell 64 per cent to $183m the lowest in six years, according to a review from Refinitiv. Read [...]
HSBC Global Asset Management hunts for new chief executive April 4, 2019 HSBC is searching for a new chief executive for the bank’s $444bn asset management arm as it attempts to turn the division into an industry leader. The bank has appointed headhunters to search for a replacement for current HSBC Global Asset Management chief executive Sridhar Chandrasekharan, Sky News reported. Read more: HSBC boss John Flint [...]
Dormant assets scheme could be expanded following government report April 4, 2019 A scheme to reallocate dormant assets to charitable causes could be extended to the investment and wealth management sector following the publication of a government report. An independent report commissioned by the government found that extending the scheme to other financial services, also including the insurance and pensions sector, could "significantly expand the money available to good [...]
Japanese investment bank Nomura to cut 100 City of London jobs in $1bn global cost-cutting plan April 4, 2019 Japanese investment bank Nomura will cut around 100 jobs in the City in a global restructuring plan to save $1bn (£760m). Nomura unveiled the cost-cutting plan to investors earlier today and also said it would shut more than 30 of 156 domestic retail branches. Read more: Nomura plans to cut up to 50 staff from [...]
Unicredit poised to strike with rival Commerzbank bid if Deutsche Bank talks break down April 4, 2019 Italian lender Unicredit could be poised to strike with a rival bid for Commerzbank should merger talks with Deutsche Bank break down. Italy’s second-biggest bank is preparing a multi-billion-euro offer as Germany’s two biggest lenders continue talks, the Financial Times reported. Read more: Deutsche Bank denies reports it could raise €10bn for Commerzbank merger Deutsche [...]
Co-operative Bank forced to defer plans after missing out on RBS competition fund but submits bid for second round April 4, 2019 The Co-operative Bank has been forced to defer plans to expand its business offering after missing out on the first round of the £775m RBS competition fund. The challenger bank, which has 85,000 SME business accounts, has turned its attention to the second round of grants designed to modernise existing services. Read more: Three challenger banks win [...]
Germany could get up to 5,000 new finance jobs in the next 18 months because of Brexit April 3, 2019 Up to 5,000 new jobs at overseas banks in Germany could be created in the next year to 18 month because of Brexit, the country’s foreign banking association said today. The lobby group for non-German banks in Germany told an event in Frankfurt that almost 50 financial institutions had decided to ramp up their activities [...]
Shock, horror: Patagonia bans sale of corporate branded vests to fintech and Wall Street firms April 3, 2019 Patagonia will no longer sell corporate branded vests to financial firms as the US outdoor clothing retailer aims to target more environmentally-focused companies. The company has banned the sale of its popular branded vests, which are a wardrobe staple on Wall Street and in Silicon Valley, to financial services and technology firms, it confirmed today. Read more: [...]
Santander to slash UK costs as part of bid to save €1.2bn across Europe April 3, 2019 Santander has unveiled plans to slash costs by a further €1.2bn (£1.03bn) in its European operations, including its UK business. The bank said it would aim for incremental annual cost savings of €1.2bn through focusing on scale and efficiency – with a tenth of that hitting Santander UK. Read more: Santander UK profits slump 14 [...]