Two latest collapsed US banks avoid IndyMac-style panic run July 28, 2008 Customers of two banks closed by federal regulators in the US on Friday were assured over the weekend that every penny of their money was protected, preventing lines of angry accountholders from forming. The calm response was a stark contrast to the hundreds of angry customers who waited for hours earlier this month in Southern [...]
Citi’s Klein walks away with £21.4m July 28, 2008 Michael Klein, the chairman of Citigroup’s institutional clients group, will walk away with a non-competition pay-out of £21.4m ($42.6m) when he leaves the New-York based bank later this year. The staggered scheme will see Klein receive £2.8m on 1 August, followed by £10.7m in March 2009 and £3.8m in October 2009, providing he does not [...]
Branson’s boy unveils new look at the polo July 28, 2008 There’s no event quite like the polo to bring the royals, celebs and business bigshots together in droves, is there? After the 24th Cartier International Polo day at the Guards Polo Club in Windsor Great Park yesterday, guests flocked to the Chinawhite tent for Rock the Polo, the event’s afterparty, where they were treated to [...]
The British energy giant set to light up America July 28, 2008 National Grid boss Steve Holliday has ambitious US plans, he tells Roger Baird It is entirely appropriate that Steve Holliday, the 51-year-old chief executive of National Grid – which runs Britain’s power network – is a bundle of energy. The engaging, former fly-half club rugby player gesticulates constantly and frequently bounds across his large London [...]
Credit crisis worsens July 28, 2008 Credit quality “declined rapidly” throughout Western Europe in the second quarter of this year as the credit crunch exacerbated inflation and slowing growth, according to a report published by ratings agency Moody’s today. The agency, which downgraded 41 debt issuers in the quarter, believes conditions are worsening thanks to rising inflation and slowing economic growth, [...]
How Obama is having an impact on our view of US brands July 28, 2008 There are still those who would separate business and politics. But they are intimately connected. In a study about a year ago using data from YouGov’s BrandIndex and our tracking of attitudes to America, we examined whether the two were correlated. We found that there was indeed a clear link: as opinions of the US [...]
Lenders hope for boost from Crosby July 28, 2008 The crumbling housing market is holding its breath for the publication of the Crosby review tomorrow into the funding struggles facing British banks, amid speculation that the government is working on a new mortgage debt swap plan to help soften the effects of the credit crunch. Sir James Crosby, the former HBOS chief executive and [...]
HBOS set to report big fall in profits July 28, 2008 Troubled mortgage giant HBOS will announce interim results this week, with profits expected to have fallen more than 50 per cent year-on-year, as investors call for asset sales to offset heavy write-downs. Analysts are forecasting a slump in profits to £1.3bn, due in part to losses related to the US sub-prime mortgage crisis and stuttering [...]
Apple boss does not have repeat cancer July 28, 2008 Apple’s chief executive Steve Jobs, who has been dogged by speculation over his health, does not have recurrent cancer or another terminal illness According to a source close to Apple, rumours that Jobs is suffering from cancer are over-exaggerated. The source said it was common for those recovering from pancreatic cancer to experience weight loss, [...]
Prudential eyes Wigley for top role July 28, 2008 Bob Wigley, the veteran banker who is leading Boris Johnson’s review of the City, is in line to become the new chairman of the Prudential. Wigley, who currently serves as head of Merrill Lynch’s European operations, is on a shortlist of candidates to run Britain’s second largest insurance group. Prudential’s interest will fuel speculation that [...]
