CITY VIEWS: DO YOU THINK THE OCCUPY PROTESTS HAVE ACHIEVED ANYTHING? February 22, 2012 MUNICE KHAN | ROTHSCHILD “If the public perceives them to be doing something beneficial then yes, they would be achieving something. But all the protesters are doing is causing a nuisance and the public agrees.” JAKE HALSTEAD | INGLEBY TRICE “They haven’t got anywhere. They have annoyed more people than they have helped and even [...]
Microsoft asks for patent help February 22, 2012 MICROSOFT has asked EU antitrust regulators to intervene in a patent dispute with Google and Motorola Mobility as it stepped up its battle against Google. Microsoft complained that Motorola Mobility was charging Microsoft too much for use of its patents in Microsoft products a week after the European Commission and the US Justice Department approved [...]
Barclays sees complaints edge down February 22, 2012 BARCLAYS saw the number of retail customer complaints it receives edge down by six per cent last year in a development that it expects to deliver millions of pounds in cost-savings. The drop in complaints came despite a 12 per cent rise in the second half of the year entirely due to the payment protection [...]
Banks pay out £1.9bn in PPI mis-selling scandal February 22, 2012 BANKS paid out a record £441m in compensation for insurance mis-selling in December, taking the total payout for 2011 to £1.9bn. The Financial Services Authority said payouts in December jumped 16 per cent from the previous record of £379m in November. There has been an increase in monthly payouts in almost every month since April, [...]
BNP Paribas offloads dollar assets to Wells February 22, 2012 WELLS Fargo is buying an energy lending business from BNP Paribas, in the US bank’s latest acquisition from a European bank seeking to shrink its balance sheet. The San Francisco-based bank is buying $9.5bn (£6.1bn) of total loan commitments, including $3.9bn in funded balances. BNP said the premium paid by Wells and other terms of [...]
Profit at St James’s Place up on turmoil February 22, 2012 THE chief executive of St James’s Place has said many FTSE-listed firms are undervalued, as the upmarket wealth manager reported a rise in profits and its dividend. “There has been a disconnect between the fundamental value of companies and their share price … 2011 was not a good year for markets,” David Bellamy told City [...]
Investment bank revenues improving over first quarter February 22, 2012 BUSINESS has been better than expected for investment banks so far this year, according to research by JP Morgan analysts, offering a glimmer of hope for the troubled industry. But the analysts, led by Kian Abouhossein, are still expecting the first quarter of this year to show a marked drop in revenues compared to the [...]
Volatility no trouble as traders push London Capital to income growth February 22, 2012 TRADERS rushed to cash in on global turmoil last year, boosting profits at spread betting firm London Capital Group. The firm said pre-tax profits for the year ending December 2011 rose nine per cent to £7.1m. London Capital, which specialises in spread-betting and online trading, reported a 13 per cent revenue rise to £39m. Chief [...]
UBS prepares new move on capital rules February 22, 2012 UBS might struggle to attract big institutional investors for more loss-absorbing bonds it wants to sell, after investors voiced distaste for the structure and price of an initial $2bn (£1.3bn) deal announced yesterday. UBS’s new bonds are designed to help bolster the bank in tough times by absorbing losses. Their value can be written down [...]
Fitch: Bailout is likely to fail February 22, 2012 GREECE has received a fresh blow as ratings agency Fitch downgraded the government, warning a “default is highly likely in the near term.” Even the shaky €130bn (£109.9bn) bailout deal, agreed by Eurozone leaders in the early hours of Tuesday morning, may not be implemented as parliamentarians in Germany’s ruling parties threatened to vote against [...]
