UBS bankers get two hours of personal time every week in bid to improve work-life balance June 1, 2016 Bankers and work-life balance don't go hand in hand – but UBS is trying to change that. Over 6,000 people working at UBS' investment banking division globally are set to get two hours of "personal time" every week as part of the bank's "take two" initiative. The scheme, that was started by investment bank president Andrea [...]
Goldman Sachs reportedly cuts dozens of investment banking jobs June 1, 2016 Goldman Sachs has reportedly cut dozens of investment banking jobs across its global locations over the past number of weeks. Affected roles included managing directors, executive directors and vice presidents in the mergers and debt and equity capital markets teams, according to a Bloomberg report. The job cuts affected offices in London, New York and Hong [...]
Private equity giants storm into MBNA credit card auction June 1, 2016 The auction of credit card giant MBNA is getting crowded as three of the world's biggest private equity firms prepare bids. Cerberus, Cinven, and TPG are considering bidding for MBNA, potentially putting them up against high street banks Lloyds Banking Group and Virgin Money who emerged as likely suitors last week. MBNA has a 11 per cent [...]
City watchdog dishes out £2.4m fine to CT Capital for historic failures to handle its PPI complaints process June 1, 2016 CT Capital has today been slapped with a £2.4m fine by the City watchdog for historic failings in its Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) complaint handling procedures. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued the £2,360,900 fine in relation to the mishandling of PPI complaints between May 2011 and November 2013, which resulted in customers missing out on redress repayments they were [...]
HSBC to axe dozens of senior posts in its investment banking division May 31, 2016 HSBC is set to axe dozens of senior posts in its investment banking division. A total of 10 senior executives at HSBC's global banking and markets division in London are expected to lose their jobs as early as this week, sources told Reuters. The round of cuts come after Europe's biggest bank appointed former Goldman Sachs executive Matthew Westerman as [...]
New polymer banknotes could cost businesses £236m to implement May 31, 2016 New polymer banknotes being introduced by the Bank of England (BoE) in September this year will cost businesses a staggering £236m to implement, research by an independent payments consultancy has found. CMSpi claims that the process of switching to polymer banknotes will leave businesses with a hefty bill, thanks to the costs of upgrading and replacing cash-handling [...]
SMEs show increasing demand for alternative finance as high street banks disappoint May 31, 2016 Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are showing increased frustration with high street banks, a new survey suggests. Some 16 per cent of 400 SME business owners seeking finance said they had been turned down by a mainstream lender, up from 11 per cent in 2015. And 31 per cent said their inability to secure finance [...]
JP Morgan Cazenove loses its long-standing lead over Bank of America Merrill Lynch in FTSE 100 stockbroking stakes May 31, 2016 JP Morgan Cazenove has lost its long-held position as the top stockbroker for FTSE 100 companies. The bank's crown has been taken by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, new figures from Adviser Rankings show. JP Morgan Cazenove has topped the FTSE 100 rankings every year since Adviser Rankings began compiling the list as part of its [...]
Why the City of London will be better off if we leave the European Union May 31, 2016 Too much of the debate about what the European Union referendum means for the City has been frustratingly narrow and short-term, confined to the immediate financial implications of leaving. Far too little attention has been paid to the longer-term health of the City, in particular the implications of remaining inside the EU. Inside the EU, [...]
For sale: 10pc of the UK’s consumer credit card market, as BAML seeks to offload MBNA May 27, 2016 Just over 10 per cent of the UK's consumer credit card market could be about to go up for sale, after it emerged Bank of America (BAML) is finally planning offload its European credit card arm. City A.M. understands BAML has begun courting interest for MBNA, the credit card provider best known for its partnerships with football clubs [...]