Some good ideas, some silly ones – but no disasters April 11, 2011 WHAT passes for moderate these days when it comes to banking reform is in fact pretty radical. Yesterday’s interim paper from Sir John Vickers’ Independent Commission on Banking (ICB), if it is implemented, will trigger vast changes to the way UK banks operate – but it reads as a surprisingly sensible and balanced piece of [...]
ICB has to strike a difficult balance April 10, 2011 With such a broad mandate to recommend how to promote greater financial stability and competition within UK banking, the Independent Commission on Banking has a wide range of options to choose from. And while the level of concern within UK-based banks is understandable, it is important to remember that the paper is merely an interim [...]
Bank ratings under review April 7, 2011 MOVES to do away with the “too big to fail” problem have prompted Moody’s to launch a revaluation of all of its ratings for major UK banks. The ratings agency said yesterday that it is embarking upon a reassessment of its ratings on all senior bank debt that could see downgrades of one to five [...]
The boss of the UK’s largest broker sees a long road back to recovery March 28, 2011 The chief executive of the UK’s largest independent stockbroker Collins Stewart takes a deep breath and thinks for a moment. After a pause, Mark Brown, who is sitting in his large modern office with floor-to-ceiling views of the City, says: “I think we are about halfway towards getting the firm back to where it should [...]
WE CAN’T TELL HOW BAD IT IS GOING TO GET March 21, 2011 CFD MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT The tragic consequences of the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan over a week ago continue to reverberate, with the terrible human cost now becoming apparent. The situation has been made much worse by the uncertainty that surrounds the severity of the damage to the Fukushima nuclear facility. The initial panic [...]
The man who wants to get the SFO ready for business March 21, 2011 The country’s top fraudbuster Richard Alderman may be retiring next year but after arresting Robert and Vincent Tchenguiz he has very publicly taken on the fight of his life. Earlier this month, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), of which the 58-year-old Alderman is the director, briefly arrested and questioned the billionaire brothers along with seven [...]
The new British Airways boss says the business is ready for take-off March 20, 2011 IT is time for a fresh start. That was the message from Keith Williams, the new boss of British Airways, as he gave City A.M. his first ever interview since becoming chief executive of Britain’s 37-year-old flag-carrier. One can forgive Williams for wanting to turn a page: his predecessor Willie Walsh, who has moved upstairs [...]
Labour party forces vote on VAT fuel hike March 13, 2011 LABOUR will this week force a House of Commons vote on reversing the recent rise in VAT on fuel, in a bid to earn political capital from soaring fuel prices. Shadow chancellor Ed Balls yesterday said the party will use an opposition day debate on Wednesday to call for an immediate reversal of the coalition’s [...]
Why the consumer is no longer king March 7, 2011 WHY are so many people still in denial? The era of debt-fuelled spending, from the private and the public sector, is over. A crisis caused by excessive and underpriced debt cannot be resolved by borrowing even more. It is a simple proposition. Virtually all companies, many individuals and some governments now understand this – but [...]
Why the young are feeling worse off March 3, 2011 FORGET about class war; we are entering a new era of generational wars. There is a growing sense among younger people that they won’t enjoy as prosperous a life as their parents. It is easy to understand such concerns: powerful economic, technological, demographic and political forces are forcing the generations apart. For a start, the [...]