What the other papers say this morning – 08 April 2014
FINANCIAL TIMES
EU bank failures deal risks unravelling
A landmark EU agreement on a common rulebook for handling bank failures is in danger of unravelling over the fine print restricting when a state can intervene to rescue a struggling bank.
Britain is facing objections from several other member states as it scrambles to revise a political deal, reached in December, in an attempt to protect the Bank of England’s emergency role as covert lender of last resort.
New Credit Suisse tax investigation
New York’s banking regulator has opened an investigation into whether Credit Suisse helped clients evade paying state taxes, a person familiar with the matter said, adding to legal probes facing the bank. The Department of Financial Services’ probe was opened last month following a hearing by a Senate committee, the person said. In addition to aiding tax evasion, investigators are also looking into whether the bank misled regulators about practices in the New York branch.
NHS hospital trust seeks private help
Britain’s most indebted NHS foundation trust has approached private sector bidders to take over its management. Peterborough and Stamford NHS Foundation Trust, which runs two hospitals, has been left grappling with a £40m annual budget deficit after using the private finance initiative to build a new hospital.
THE TIMES
ECB official: no rush to print money
The European Central Bank will reflect deeply on the medium-term outlook on inflation before embarking on any extraordinary measures, Vitor Constancio, its vice president, said yesterday. His remarks to the European Parliament hinted at less enthusiasm for resorting to the printing presses than suggested by ECB head Mario Draghi.
Searchers ‘close to discovering plane’
The Australian Navy ship leading the search for the lost Malaysian airliner is preparing to launch a remote-controlled submarine today to photograph wreckage on the bottom of the Indian Ocean.
The Daily Telegraph
Pope says Vatican bank will stay open
Pope Francis has given his backing to the Vatican’s scandal-plagued bank, ending speculation that he might shut it down as part of his drive to clean up the Vatican’s murky finances. The decision follows a breakneck transparency drive at the bank.
South Stream pipeline in deep freeze
The European Union is close to freezing plans to complete the $50bn (£30bn) South Stream gas pipeline through the Black Sea from Russia, the first serious EU action to punish the Kremlin for the seizure of Crimea.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Banks get two years for Volcker
The Federal Reserve said yesterday it will give banks two years of extra time to conform certain debt holdings with the Volcker rule, but stopped short of granting an exception the industry had been seeking. The Fed said banks would have two additional years to make sure their collateralised loan obligations don’t fall under the rule’s ban on speculative investments. The decision could force some banks to divest their CLOs, which are complex securities that bundle together corporate loans as well as bonds. The Volcker rule restricts banks from holding bonds as an investment. The rule impacts a handful of large firms.