De Villiers belts fastest ODI ton January 18, 2015 SOUTH AFRICA batsman AB de Villiers recorded the fastest one-day international century in history after reaching three figures from just 31 balls as his side thrashed West Indies yesterday. The 30-year-old beat the previous record of 36 posted by New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson against the same opposition last year, smashing nine fours and 16 [...]
Currency chaos: Swiss franc soars as Switzerland’s central bank abandons euro exchange rate cap January 15, 2015 The Swiss central bank rocked global markets yesterday, adding to an already turbulent 2015 with a shock decision to abandon its euro exchange rate cap. The franc rocketed by 39 per cent against the euro after the Swiss National Bank (SNB) said it would no longer intervene in currency markets to keep the franc weak [...]
Tesco poaches Waitrose ad agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty to aid turnaround January 15, 2015 Advertising agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH) has quit working with Waitrose and moved across to help Tesco rebuild consumer trust in its brand. The supermarket’s chief executive Dave Lewis also confirmed the appointment of consultancy firm Blue Rubicon. “We are assembling a small team of world class advisers to work on the turnaround of our [...]
Citigroup profit wiped out by $3.5bn litigation costs January 15, 2015 Citi’s profits dived 86 per cent in the final quarter of the year as the giant US lender set aside $3.5bn (£2.3bn) to cover legal settlements and the cost of its restructuring. Profits for the final three months of 2014 came in at $350m, compared with $2.5bn in the same period of 2013. Revenues held [...]
The politics of fear is a risky game – Editor’s Letter January 15, 2015 The Prime Minister criticised online encryption this week, on the back of the Charlie Hebdo massacre, in words that appeared to threaten a ban. In the words of tech Twitter guru @SwiftOnSecurity “Politicians: The kind of people who think they can ban math.” But to many businesses this was no joke. One City FinTech startup, [...]
A reservation under the name: Oscar? January 15, 2015 TWO COMEDIES, The Grand Budapest Hotel and Birdman, are tied for the most Academy Award nominations, with nine each. British nominees include Eddie Redmayne and Benedict Cumberbatch – both for Best Actor. The gold statues are handed out on 22 February.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch share price falls on dismal final quarter results January 15, 2015 Unpredictable volatility in December hit bond trading revenues at Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) in the final quarter of 2014, the giant bank said yesterday. Shares fell despite the bank’s progress on cutting costs, and chief executive Brian Moynihan’s upbeat assessment that BAML is succeeding in “resolving our most significant litigation matters.” Profits for [...]
Pensioner bond website crashes due to demand January 15, 2015 THE CHANCELLOR has proclaimed the launch of £10bn worth of guaranteed growth bonds for over 65s as a “huge success”. A rush of interested investors caused the National Savings and Investments (NSI) website to crash after the bonds were launched yesterday morning. The bonds offer market leading rates, at 2.8 per cent interest over one year or [...]
Ofcom puts BT under pressure to cut broadband cost to rivals January 15, 2015 Ofcom yesterday warned BT that it might be forced to raise broadband prices for customers or slash what it charges rivals to use its network, under tough new tests. The proposal is designed to ensure that BT cannot price rivals such as Sky and TalkTalk out of the market. Under current rules, BT allows rivals to [...]
US authorities fine UBS’ dark pool $14.4m January 15, 2015 Swiss bank UBS’ dark pool was fined $14.4m (£9.5m) last night after it was accused of failing to tell all clients about a type of product on offer. The Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) said the bank pitched the order type almost exclusively to market-makers and high-frequency traders, without letting other participants in the trading system [...]
