Co-op Bank names former Lloyds Commercial Banking boss as new CEO July 9, 2018 The Co-perative Bank has appointed a new boss who was once tipped as a favourite to become chief executive of Lloyds. Andrew Bester was previously group director and chief executive of the Commercial Banking division at Lloyds Banking Group. He was at one point viewed as a possible candidate to become chief executive of the [...]
Citi boosts Paris office ahead of Brexit with hires from UBS July 9, 2018 Citigroup has hired two bankers from UBS and relocated another top manager as it seeks to boost its Paris investment bank office shortly before the UK leaves the EU. The US bank's chair of continental Europe, Luigi de Vecchi, will relocate to Paris from Milan to oversee a "long-term commitment and investment that we are [...]
Experian to acquire London fintech startup Clearscore in £275m deal July 6, 2018 Experian, the world’s biggest credit data company, has bought London-based fintech company Clearscore in a £275m deal. The credit checking firm's CEO Brian Cassin said the deal was “another important step in our strategy to extend the services we provide to UK consumers”. Clearscore launched in July 2015 and now offers over 6m UK customers [...]
These are the six new types of banking jobs that HSBC reckons will be in high demand in the future July 5, 2018 A new report has revealed six new banking jobs of the future expected as the industry focuses on digital evolution, with a view to how that will impact on people in the workforce. The study commissioned by HSBC analyses the challenges and opportunities on the horizon for the banking industry and has used that to [...]
Serious Fraud Office ends Lloyds Libor probes because of “insufficient evidence” July 4, 2018 The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has dropped a criminal investigation into Libor manipulation at Lloyds Banking Group, removing a cloud over the lender. The SFO dropped the case because it lacked evidence, despite the Financial Conduct Authority’s previous assertion that 16 individuals at Lloyds knew about the Libor fixing. Some lines of inquiry in the [...]
Paragon buys Titlestone developer and loan book in £274m deal with Oaktree Capital Management July 3, 2018 Challenger bank Paragon today announced the purchase of £48m residential developer Titlestone and a £226m loan book from Oaktree Capital Management. Paragon, which offers mortgage and business lending, said the moves are part of a strategy to diversify into specialist lending markets. Titlestone advanced £274m in loans to small and medium-sized developers during the year [...]
City firms increase hiring and technology investment plans in spite of Brexit uncertainty July 2, 2018 Financial services firms increased hiring and investment in the second quarter in spite of continued nerves over the Brexit process, new figures show. Employment across financial services rose at the fastest pace in a year, with a balance of 24 per cent saying they had increased hiring in the second quarter, according to the survey [...]
Barclays adds three new hires in digital markets push as it tries to face down activist investor June 28, 2018 Barclays has appointed three new senior bankers as it tries to push forwards better use of digital technology in its corporate and investment bank. The move comes as the bank tries to demonstrate moves to strengthen its investment bank, after activist investor Edward Bramson built up a stake in the lender. Bramson is reportedly pushing [...]
TSB staff faced ‘sickness epidemic’ under strain of computer crisis, union claimed June 28, 2018 Staff at embattled bank TSB faced a “sickness epidemic” because of the stress of dealing with disgruntled customers after a massive computer systems meltdown, according to a union which represents some of its staff. The boss of the TBU union, Mark Brown, claimed that absences increased by 25 per cent in some business areas, in [...]
Banks to be subjected to ‘cyber stress tests’ to see if they could withstand a major hacking attack June 27, 2018 Financial services companies will be subject to “cyber stress tests” to establish if they could recover in the event of a major breach, the Bank of England said today. The bank is establishing new standards for how long a bank’s ability to deliver key services such as providing payments and insuring against and dispersing risk [...]