BofA settles loan bias case December 21, 2011 BANK of America Merrill Lynch’s Countrywide mortgage division has settled an agreement to pay a record $335m (£213.7m) for discriminating against minority homebuyers in what Justice Department officials have said is the largest discrimination settlement in US history. The case, brought against subprime mortgage company Countrywide for its conduct between 2004 and its 2008 acquisition [...]
Essar Energy needs board reshuffle December 21, 2011 WHEN the London Stock Exchange tried a couple of weeks ago to reassure investors about the performance of recently floated companies, it did not dwell too long on the experience of Essar Energy, the Indian energy group that is now a component of the FTSE 100 (just). Essar Energy floated at a price of 420p in [...]
Soc Gen shuffles its staff December 21, 2011 SOCIETE Générale has hired former Credit Agricole executive Bertrand Badré as its new chief financial officer after a surprise reshuffle. Current CFO Didier Valet will move sideways to become the head of Soc Gen’s corporate and investment banking arm, starting on 3 January. His move comes after current investment banking chief Michel Péretié said he [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING December 21, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES EX-LEHMAN CHIEF TO RUN SPAIN’S ECONOMY Spain’s new government has placed the economy in the hands of Luis de Guindos, former head of Lehman Brothers in Spain, as Mariano Rajoy, the prime minister, seeks to return the country to growth while embarking on a programme of budgetary austerity. As finance minister, Mr de [...]
US home sales hint at recovery December 21, 2011 US home sales surged in November, according data out yesterday from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), which economists believe suggests the market is on the path to recovery. Sales of existing homes rose four per cent from October to an annual rate of 4.42m. But the NAR also revised data from 2007 onwards, showing [...]
Fitch warns US over credit rating December 21, 2011 Fitch warned again yesterday that the US’s rising debt burden was not consistent with maintaining the country’s top AAA credit rating, but said there would likely be no decision on whether to cut the rating before 2013. Last month, Fitch changed its US credit rating outlook to negative from stable.
Yahoo set to cut stake in Alibaba December 21, 2011 Yahoo is discussing a plan to slash its stakes in China’s Alibaba Group and its Japanese affiliate as part of a complicated share transaction valued at roughly $17bn (£10.9bn), sources familiar with the matter said. The deal is expected to be considered by Yahoo’s board today.
Demand for easy money swamps ECB December 21, 2011 EUROZONE banks have flooded the European Central Bank (ECB) with demand for cheap liquidity, figures showed yesterday, blowing analysts’ estimates out of the water. A total of 523 banks borrowed €489.2bn (£407bn) in three-year loans in the ECB’s biggest ever funding exercise – over €100bn above consensus expectations. Regulators had encouraged lenders to take advantage [...]
Bank at centre of a game of hot potato December 21, 2011 Y ESTERDAY’S data was the hardest evidence yet that since taking the helm, ECB president Mario Draghi has endorsed a policy of quantitative easing “by the backdoor”. The idea is to flood banks with cheap money and hope they – or “encourage” them to – use it to buy up sovereign debt. To make it [...]
EC gives thumbs up to a €45bn Dexia guarantee December 21, 2011 FAILED bank Dexia will be allowed to receive a €45bn (£37.5bn) refinancing guarantee from France, Belgium and Luxembourg, rather than the €90bn originally offered, the European Commission (EC) said yesterday. The temporary guarantee covers bank refinancing measures with a maturity of up to three years, issued until May 2012. Strict rules prohibiting state aid to [...]
