Lazard bonus payments wipe out its profits February 6, 2012 LAZARD was pushed into the red in its fourth-quarter of last year due to a slowdown in trading and a decision not to defer bonus pay-outs, the US investment bank revealed yesterday. It reported a pre-tax loss of $3.4m (£2.15m) in the fourth quarter, compared to a profit of $134m during the equivalent period in 2010. [...]
Balls warns Osborne over Bank powers February 6, 2012 CHANCELLOR George Osborne is creating a “dangerous” concentration of power and information in the Bank of England, according to opposition critics of his new financial regulation bill. Shadow chancellor Ed Balls said that it was a mistake to channel information only through the BoE governor in the event of a crisis. He complained that the heads [...]
Sants: we will coordinate legion of new regulators February 6, 2012 FSA chief Hector Sants has sought to reassure firms that the government’s new regulatory regime would not produce duplication. In a briefing to bankers, Sants said the new bodies supervising financial firms will “be able to act independently as they will be pursuing different goals” but stressed that “this approach is one of ‘independent but [...]
New extremes for investment bank bonuses February 6, 2012 INVESTMENT banks are paying out unequal pay packets on an unprecedented scale, according to industry experts. Recruiters who have been in the business for decades say they have never seen such a disparity between those being amply rewarded to keep them and those whose bonus has been scrapped entirely – often in an attempt to [...]
Boris wants to control every railway in London February 6, 2012 BORIS Johnson has made a bid to control every rail service in London as part of an ambitious plan to simplify ticket structures and improve reliability and service frequency. Johnson said the current “Byzantine fares-setting policy” will be abolished and that his plan could save up to £100m over 20 years by removing the need [...]
Foreign cash flows to City February 6, 2012 THE UK’S financial services sector is deeply attractive to foreign investors, a study by TheCityUK claimed yesterday. Over a quarter of the 50,000 firms in the sector are owned overseas, rising to 33 per cent for companies valued between £25m and £100m, and 45 per cent for businesses firms worth over £100m. Of that investment, [...]
Tories pick a co-treasurer February 6, 2012 HEDGE fund tycoon Michael Farmer has been appointed as the Conservative Party’s co-treasurer, after Lord Stanley Fink said he would step down from the role in March to focus on “business interests and philanthropic work”. Farmer, a prominent Tory donor, has more than 40 years’ trading experience on the London Metals Exchange and founded RK [...]
EU body says bank capital plan on track February 6, 2012 MOST plans put forward by European banks to improve the industry’s resilience are in line with what was asked of them, their regulator said on Monday, as some banks made last-ditch efforts to meet the demand to lift capital. Italy’s Banco Popolare unveiled a plan to raise hundreds of millions of euros by buying back [...]
European state debts worsen February 6, 2012 GOVERNMENT debts in Europe have grown even bigger, official data revealed yesterday. Average state debt in the European Union rose to the equivalent of 82.2 per cent of GDP in the third quarter of last year – up from 81.7 per cent at the end of the second quarter. In the troubled Eurozone area, burdened [...]
Citigroup wins consent to offer credit cards in China February 6, 2012 THE CHINESE arm of Citigroup announced yesterday that it has won regulatory approval to issue credit cards in mainland China, becoming the first non-Asian bank to receive permission. Citi, which has branches in 13 cities, said it would likely launch credit card operations this year. “This approval represents a significant milestone in the continued expansion [...]