Lord Blackwell is set to be Lloyds Banking Group’s chairman November 28, 2013 SCOTTISH Widows boss and Lloyds Bank board member Lord Blackwell is poised to take over the chairmanship of the group, it emerged last night. The City veteran is to take over from outgoing non-executive Sir Win Bischoff, who announced his intention to resign earlier this year. The handover is expected to take place early in the [...]
Boss of Speedy Hire quits after £5m hole found November 28, 2013 BRITISH construction equipment provider Speedy Hire has said its chief executive will step down and that the finance director of its international unit has been suspended after it uncovered accounting irregularities. The company said yesterday that, based on the information it had available, control processes within its international division had been repeatedly and deliberately circumvented. [...]
UBS to combine currency, rates and credit trading into new unit November 28, 2013 SWISS bank UBS has reorganised part of its investment bank to put its currency, interest rates and credit trading businesses into one unit, amid a growing European investigation into potential manipulation of currency markets. A memo sent by the bank last week said a new FRC (FX, rates, credit) unit will be run by Chris [...]
Top hedge fund investor sells holdings of Co-op Bank bonds November 28, 2013 A KEY player in the deal to take ownership of the Co-op Bank away from the Co-op Group has sold its holdings in the lender, it emerged yesterday, after the value of its debt holdings increased. Aurelius Capital has sold its bonds in the bank, meaning it will not be involved in the debt for [...]
Internet killed the video store November 28, 2013 BLOCKBUSTER headed closer to a tear-jerking conclusion yesterday, after its administrators shut a further 30 stores and said there were no acceptable rescue bids on the table. Moorfields Corporate Recovery will start to close the remaining 150 branches, though it will keep looking for a buyer.
Net migration climbs as fewer people exit UK November 28, 2013 THE NUMBER of people leaving the UK to live in other countries has reached the lowest level in over a decade, driving increases in net migration upward again. The rise in net migration had slowed since 2011, but rose in the year to the end of June, up by 182,000. In the year to the end [...]
Spreadbetters fight back over new tax claims November 28, 2013 SPREAD betting firms fought back yesterday after the Treasury said it would discuss the tax exemption of spread betting following concerns raised in the House of Lords. Labour peer Lord Eatwell accused spread betting of being “a really extraordinary form of tax avoidance within the financial services industry”. As a result, Lord Newby, the Treasury [...]
Analysts look to Osborne speech for giveaways November 28, 2013 UK ECONOMISTS laid out the possibilities for chancellor George Osborne’s Autumn statement yesterday, with less than a week to go until his speech. Capital Economics, PwC, BDO and IHS Global Insight issued their own expectations for the announcement, which will set the course for the government’s economic policies in the months ahead. Most expect the coalition [...]
Europe’s banks told they have €280bn hole November 28, 2013 EUROPE’S banks have a capital hole of €280bn (£233bn) and will have to issue €180bn in new equity to plug the gap, analysts at PwC estimated yesterday. The tide of new rules and clarifications around capital requirements, leverage rules and risk weightings is expected to push the requirements to the top of lenders’ agendas. And [...]
Low cap on workplace pension fees will hurt small businesses November 28, 2013 A LEADING pensions provider has called on the government to cap management fees on workplace pensions at 0.5 per cent, in a move out of step with the wider industry. Legal & General made the comments as part of a consultation into pension fees, which ended yesterday. “These look like tiny slivers of money, fractions [...]