Explosive report published into Lloyds’s handling of HBos Reading fraud case June 19, 2018 Lloyds bank and consultancy giant KPMG came under renewed pressure today following the publication of a damning report into an historic fraud case at HBos’s Reading branch. The internal report by a Lloyds Banking Group employee, who has since departed the firm, details allegations of criminal misconduct by senior bank staff and auditors around the [...]
CYBG and Virgin Money agree £1.7bn takeover with Virgin Money boss Jayne-Anne Gadhia stepping down from chief exec role June 18, 2018 The owner of Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, CYBG, confirmed this morning it had agreed a £1.7bn tie-up with Virgin Money, which it said will create "the UK's first true national banking competitor to the status quo". The terms of a recommended all-share offer have been agreed, and based on the closing price of 306p per [...]
MPs to Lloyds Banking Group: ‘We will publish report on HBOS Reading fraud’ June 15, 2018 A cross-party group of MPs today said it will publish a report on an alleged cover-up by Lloyds executives of fraud at acquisition target HBOS at the height of the financial crisis. The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Fair Business Banking will put the report in the public domain within seven days of a letter sent [...]
Ranked: The banks that have closed the most branches since 2015 – and which regions have been hardest hit June 15, 2018 New analysis has revealed which of banks have shut the most branches since 2015, with NatWest, HSBC and Lloyds Bank reporting the highest number of closures. Some 2,868 UK retail branches will have shut up shop by the end of this year, with 879 bank closures during last year, according to Which? Money research. That [...]
UBS London HQ is sold for £1bn as Asian investment in London’s “trophy buildings” rises June 14, 2018 The London headquarters for multinational investment bank UBS has been bought for £1bn by a Hong Kong property tycoon, as Asian demand for "trophy buildings" in the capital grows. CK Asset Holdings, run by Victor Li after he took over the company from his father Li Ka-shing earlier this year, has purchased the prime office [...]
British Business Bank seeds new £2.5bn patient capital investment fund with £400m June 13, 2018 The British Business Bank (BBB) has today launched a £2.5bn programme with £400m of seed capital as part of an effort to match the US in creating the next generation of "unicorn" firms. The newly launched British Patient Capital (BCP) will be a subsidiary of the government-owned BBB, with the aim of providing long-term finance [...]
HSBC to invest up to $17bn in expansion and tech as it swings to ‘growth mode’ June 11, 2018 HSBC will invest as much as $17bn (£12.7bn) in expanding its network and adopting new technology as it puts a period of restructuring behind it, its chief executive announced today. The UK's largest bank by assets will invest between $15bn and $17bn "primarily in growth and technology", chief executive John Flint said in an announcement. [...]
TSB denies boss Paul Pester misled MPs over extent of computer issues June 10, 2018 TSB has denied that its chief executive Paul Pester misled MPs over the extent of a crippling computer meltdown at the bank, after reports that he had seen evidence contradicting his statements to a parliamentary committee. The bank called in IT giants IBM after its migration to new computer systems in April went disastrously wrong, [...]
Co-operative Bank boss Liam Coleman to step down after five years at the lender June 7, 2018 The boss of Co-operative Bank Liam Coleman is to step down after five years at the bank. A statement from the board today said that Coleman made the decision after successfully completing the lender's recapitalisation process last year. The board said it was "mindful" of the need to manage a timely and orderly succession, telling [...]
Top City regulator Andrew Bailey criticises TSB and chief executive Paul Pester following IT meltdown June 6, 2018 Top City watchdog Andrew Bailey has criticised TSB and its chief executive for poor communication following the IT meltdown which left thousands of customers without access to their accounts for weeks. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) boss wrote that the regulator is “dissatisfied with TSB’s communications with its customers”. TSB’s “poor” communications could “reduce trust [...]