HSBC boss John Flint needs to deliver short term rigour to the bank as well as a long term vision February 19, 2019 Imagine making nearly $20bn in profit during your first year in a job, only to be met with profound disappointment. Such is the lot of John Flint, the latest chief executive tasked with bringing the best out of Europe's biggest bank. HSBC's pre-tax profit for 2018 dragged the FTSE into the red on Tuesday, disappointing traders [...]
Ex-Barclays chairman Marcus Agius testifies in Qatar fundraising fraud trial February 19, 2019 Former Barclays chairman Marcus Agius appeared as a witness at Southwark Crown Court today in the historic trial of four senior bankers accused of fraud for their actions at the height of the financial crisis. Agius is the first heavyweight banker to appear as a witness in a trial connected to the 2008 crash, more [...]
Goldman Sachs Asia Pacific chief executive to retire this year February 19, 2019 Goldman Sachs’ Asia Pacific chairman and chief executive Ken Hitchner is retiring from the company. Hitchner will remain in the Hong-Kong based role, which covers the entire region excluding Japan, until mid-2019, Reuters said citing a source familiar with the matter. Read more: Goldman Sachs chief warns that Brexit could affect UK investment plans He [...]
Danske Bank ordered to shut Estonian branch amid money laundering scandal February 19, 2019 Estonia has ordered Danske Bank to shut its local branch by the end of the year as investigations into an alleged €200bn money laundering scandal widen. The Danish bank has also decided to close down banking activities in Russia, Latvia and Lithuania, which it said was following a strategic review. Read more: Troubled Danske Bank's [...]
HSBC profits fall short as fourth quarter market madness hits another banking giant February 19, 2019 HSBC posted a 16 per cent annual profit rise but fell below expectations as market volatility hurt the bank in the final quarter. Shares in the bank fell 3.3 per cent in early trading – the FTSE 100's sharpest faller – as it remained cautious on its outlook for 2019 due to Brexit uncertainty and [...]
HSBC sued for £150m in relation to Disney tax avoidance scheme February 18, 2019 HSBC Private Bank is being sued for £150m by over 400 investors in connection with a film financing scheme that purported to invest money in Disney blockbusters for tax benefits. Investors, including ex-Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and ex-England managers Sven-Goran Eriksson and Glenn Hoddle, lost out after tax authorities ruled that the film [...]
Berlin banking tech startup behind N26 and Oaknorth nabs €30m from Skype-backer Bessemer February 18, 2019 Software-as-a-service startup Mambu, which provides banking rails to the likes of N26 and Oaknorth, has raised €30m (£26.3m) from the world's oldest venture capital firm. Bessemer Venture Partners, which has backed the likes of Skype, Linkedin and Pinterest, led the round with participation also coming from Acton Capital, the venture arm of Commerzbank, Point Nine Capital [...]
Google and Salesforce inject $75m into London’s Gocardless February 18, 2019 City fintech firm Gocardless has raised $75m (£58.1m) in a series E funding round, led by new investors Adam Street Partners and the venture capital arms of Google and Salesforce. The company aims to fix the way businesses collect invoices and make recurring payments by building debit technology on top of the world’s existing banking systems. Chief [...]
Business lender Iwoca rakes in £150m financing from Augmentum Fintech and NIBC February 18, 2019 Small business lending challenger Iwoca has closed a total fundraise of £150m, led by an earlier £7.5m investment from London-listed fund Augmentum Fintech. City A.M. understands the raise was made up of a £20m series D equity funding round and £130m in debt capital. Existing investor Prime Ventures also participated, alongside NIBC Bank. A person [...]
The ECB has been keeping zombie banks alive February 18, 2019 A decade after the outbreak of the global financial crisis, banks in the euro area have still not recovered. The Eurozone financial stock index is 65 per cent below the pre-crisis peak, whereas the US S&P financial index has come close to the pre-crisis level. The varying fates of financial institutions is due to the [...]