ECB: BAZOOKA IS STILL NOT READY August 2, 2012 MARKETS plunged yesterday after the European Central Bank (ECB) said it is not yet ready to help relieve the financial pressure on the troubled Spanish and Italian governments. Last week ECB boss Mario Draghi vowed to do “whatever it takes” to keep the euro together, sending markets soaring. But yesterday he failed to deliver on [...]
House prices stall in June but annual picture remains solid July 12, 2012 AFTER six months of growth, house prices inched down in June, according to a report released today by LSL Property Services. The average UK house price crept down to £224,102, a 0.1 per cent fall on the month, said LSL. On an annualised basis, however house prices were up three per cent. “Despite the recession [...]
VOTES ON TOP PAY June 20, 2012 ■ Shareholders in publicly listed UK firms will get a binding vote on directors’ pay policy every three years. ■ They will vote on the whole package, covering salaries, bonuses and exactly what determines the level of pay. ■ That includes severance packages, in an effort to end “rewards for failure” when unsuccessful bosses leave [...]
Audit quality threatened by fee pressure June 14, 2012 PRESSURE to reduce fees poses a threat to the quality of British auditing, a leading member of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said yesterday, as the body issued its annual reports on the performance of the country’s four largest accountancy firms. Paul George, the organisation’s executive director of conduct, told City A.M.: “Commercial pressures run the [...]
Shareholder activism is set to grow further June 12, 2012 INSTITUTIONAL investors are taking an increasingly active role in the firms in which they invest, according to new research that shows the changes in attitude that paved the way for the shareholder spring. Investors are more likely than ever to demand firms provide clarity on long-term strategy and redraft executive pay deals to incentivise good [...]
Rio summit is a game changer for accountants’ role in businesses June 12, 2012 FOR some time now, the accountancy profession has been actively engaged in the debates on sustainable development and climate change, at least in respect of those areas that impact on accounting and business. Despite best efforts, two commonly asked questions about environmental and sustainability issues continue to be asked. The first, asked by accountants, is: [...]
Charities need to be innovative to beat tough times May 29, 2012 PUBLIC services are being opened up to a variety of providers. If you go swimming, social enterprise Greenwich Leisure Limited, not the council, may well be running the pool. Your rubbish is more likely to be collected by a private company. And if you have a relative in need of social care, then it’s likely [...]
Turner vows to act if FSA finds new mis-selling May 22, 2012 THE CHAIR of the FSA, Lord Turner, has assured MPs that if the watchdog finds “widespread evidence” that banks have been mis-selling financial products to small firms, “we will take action”. His warning came as the Treasury Select Committee kicked off an inquiry into corporate governance, particularly in banks. At a hearing yesterday, Lib Dem John Thurso [...]
New Greek PM greeted by fear over ECB funds May 16, 2012 A CHANGE to the liquidity support offered to Greek banks by Brussels prompted more worries over the future of the Eurozone yesterday, while the troubled Mediterranean state announced that its emergency government would be headed up by a judge until fresh elections on 17 June. Greek President Karolos Papoulias named council of state head Panagiotis [...]
WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS April 30, 2012 BNY Mellon The financial services firm has appointed Peter Hazou as head of market management for treasury services, Europe, Middle East and Africa. He will report to Susan Skerritt, global head of business strategy and market solutions. Hazou joins from UniCredit, where he served as head of strategy and business development, global transaction banking. While [...]