Another challenger bank just got its banking licence July 21, 2016 The challenger bank race is hotting up as another startup is granted a banking licence. Germany’s Number 26 has been fully approved by authorities to operate as a bank across Europe, and plans to launch in the UK imminently. The three-year-old fintech startup backed by billionaire Paypal founder Peter Thiel now has the stamp of [...]
HSBC had investigated foreign exchange trade and found no breach of conduct July 21, 2016 HSBC conducted its own internal investigation into a $3.5bn (£2.65bn) currency trade over which two of the bank's top traders were charged yesterday, it has been revealed. The Financial Times reported today that an internal investigation by HSBC three years ago found nothing wrong with the transaction. The bank allegedly conducted the review after a foreign exchange scandal erupted [...]
Mastercard snaps up Vocalink giving banks a £700m windfall July 21, 2016 Mastercard has snapped up a majority stake in Vocalink, the payments processor that probably handles your salary payment, in a £700m deal giving the biggest UK banks a windfall. The deal comes after the UK regulator urged banks to sell their stake in Vocalink, the system which governs trillions of payments in the UK, from bacs salaries to [...]
Challenger bank TSB reports 440.5 per cent jump in pre-tax profit July 21, 2016 Challenger bank TSB has reported a massive jump in pre-tax profit for the six months to 30 June, as customer numbers increased to beat targets and lending went up by almost 30 per cent. The figures Statutory pre-tax profit went up 440.5 per cent compared to the first half of 2015, hitting £125.4m, compared with [...]
Morgan Stanley chief exec says the bank may have to move staff to the continent following Brexit vote July 20, 2016 Morgan Stanley's chief exec has said the bank will relocate some of its UK staff following the Brexit vote. James Gorman said today the UK's decision to depart from the EU likely meant the bank would need to set up a headquarters in continental Europe, which would mean some jobs would be shifted. However, Gorman [...]
Why challenger banks see Brexit as an opportunity July 20, 2016 A group of challenger banks has written to the Treasury select committee to shine a light on the opportunity Brexit brings to cut banking red tape. The letter, which is signed by the chief executives of Aldermore, Charter Savings, Hampden and Co, Metro Bank, OneSavings Bank, Secure Trust Bank and Shawbrook, is dated 30 June. However, [...]
HSBC currency traders charged in New York in US rate-rigging investigation July 20, 2016 Two of HSBC's top currency traders have been charged in New York today as part of the US investigation into rate-rigging, currency fixing and market manipulation. One, Mark Johnson, the bank's London-based global head of foreign exchange was arrested at John F Kennedy airport yesterday by FBI agents and was charged this afternoon in a federal court in Brooklyn with [...]
Morgan Stanley profits and revenues slide but shares rise as investors still impressed July 20, 2016 Morgan Stanley failed to bring home the bacon in its most recent quarter, after it revealed today that both profits and revenues had failed to meet last year's standards. The figures The banking behemoth reported net income for the three months to June of $1.6bn (£1.2bn), down 12 per cent compared with $1.8bn the year [...]
Everything that glitters is Goldman Sachs, as profits surge for the three months to June July 19, 2016 Goldman Sachs triumphed over all expectations today, reporting a surge in profits for its most recent quarter. The figures The US banking giant reported net earnings for the three months to June of $1.8bn (£1.4bn), a massive 74 per cent increase on just over $1bn the year before and a 61 per cent increase from $1.1bn in the [...]
Santander’s added $100m to its fintech venture fund July 18, 2016 Santander is ploughing a further $100m (£75.3m) into its venture fund to invest in fintech startups around the world. The cash doubles the bank's UK-based venture investment fund, Santander InnoVentures, which has already invested in blockchain startups Ripple and Digital Asset Holdings. “A deeper investment in our fintech fund represents Santander's success in investing in disruptive new technologies that will help [...]