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Daily Banking News at Banking Times, the UK's leading independent banking news publication.
Updated: 1 hour 4 min ago
Blackstone 2011 annual profits flat with 2010
Blackstone has reported its financial results for the quarter and year ended 31 December 2011. The firm stated that it made an annual net income of $1.4bn, flat compared to that of the previous year. Quarterly net income was $450m, down from the $513m it made during the corresponding period last year. The firm also [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
ICICI Bank reports rising 9M profits
Indian banking giant ICICI Bank has reported its financial results for the quarter and nine months ended 31 December 2011. In the 9M period the bank reported a 29% year-on-year increase in consolidated profit after tax of US$1.1bn, up from US$852m. Stand-alone profit after tax during the 9M period rose by 23% from US$696m to [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Bradesco reports rising annual net income
Brazilian bank Bradesco has reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full-year 2011, including annual adjusted net income of R$11.2bn. This is a 14.2% rise on the R$9.8bn the firm made in the previous year. It continues the rise in net income that was evident earlier in the year, but at a lower [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Jefferies acquires RBS corporate broking arm
US investment bank, Jefferies, has agreed to acquire Hoare Govett, the stockbroking business of Royal Bank of Scotland. With its one hundred year history, Hoare Govett is regarded as one of the UK’s most prominent corporate brokers and the acquisition includes the firm’s entire senior broking team. In all, around 50 members of staff will [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Lloyds commits to branch network
Lloyds Banking Group has committed to keeping the same number of branches in its network for the next three years. The part state-owned bank has also pledge not to close a branch if it is the last one in a particular community. Commenting on the announcements, group chief executive, António Horta-Osório, says: “We want to [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Cheshire Building Society launches new cash ISA
Cheshire Building Society has announced the launch of a brand new cash ISA with a rate of 3.06% AER tax-free (variable) on balances exceeding £1,000. The rate includes a 2.06% AER tax-free introductory fixed bonus that lasts until 30 September 2013. Cheshire Building Society will write to customers a month before the expiration of the [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Deutsche Bank reports rising annual profits
Deutsche Bank has reported its preliminary and unaudited financial results for 2011 and the fourth quarter of that year. The German banking giant made quarterly net income of €186m, down significantly from the €605m of the corresponding period last year and the €777m of Q3 2011. Annual net income was €4.3bn, almost twice the €2.3bn [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Credit terms tighten across eurozone
According to the latest bank lending survey from the European Central Bank (ECB), the eurozone saw a “surge” in banks tightening up their credit standards in the final quarter of 2011. Both loans to non-financial corporations and loans to households for house purchase came under greater scrutiny, as did consumer credit, but to a lesser [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Barclays outlines ISA fund offering
For this ISA season, Barclays is expanding its range of funds to 22, all of which come with a 0% initial charge and no set up costs. Increased from 14 last year, the funds are available by phone for existing customers or through Barclays’ online platform. There are five ready-made portfolios (Foundation funds), which are [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Nomura returns to the black in Q3
Nomura Holdings, Inc. has reported its financial results for the third quarter of its fiscal year, including pre-tax income of 34.5bn yen and net income attributable to Nomura shareholders of 17.8bn yen. This compares favourably to the corresponding period last year when the firm made pre-tax income of 27.8bn yen and net income of 13.4bn [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Lloyds’ head of wholesale quits
Lloyds Banking Group has announced changes in its senior management structure as follows: Truett Tate, group executive director for wholesale, will retire this month. The sixty-one-year-old joined the group in 2003 as managing director, corporate banking, before being appointed to the Board in 2004. Andrew Gézcy, managing director of wholesale banking and markets, will report [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Fred Goodwin stripped of Knighthood
The Cabinet Office has let slip that the Knighthood conferred upon Fred Goodwin as a Knight Bachelor has been cancelled and annulled. The official announcement will appear shortly in the London Gazette and the decision, not normally publicised in advance, has been taken on the advice of the little known honours Forfeiture Committee. Mr Goodwin [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
FSA bans Sinha and issues £2.867m fine
Ravi Shankar Sinha has been fined £2.867m by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for fraudulently acquiring for himself £1.367m from a company owned by a private equity fund advised by JC Flowers. The fine consists of £1.5m punitive element and £1.367m disgorgement, and Sinha has been barred from performing any function in relation to any [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Santander reports 35% decline in annual profits
Spanish banking giant Banco Santander has reported its annual financial results for 2011, including net profits of €5.35bn. This is a 35% decline from the €8.2bn of 2010, and comes following extraordinary provisions of €3.18bn. If the bank had not made pre-tax provisions in Q4 against Spanish property exposure annual profits would have come to [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
FSA appoints investment banking advisor
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has appointed Will Samuel to the role of investment banking senior advisor. Mr Samuel, who takes up the post today (30th January), has more than 35 years of experience in investment banking, most recently as vice chairman of Lazard & Co. Commenting on the appointment, FSA chief executive, Hector Sants, [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Aozora reports 61% rise in 9M net income
Aozora Bank, Ltd. has reported its financial results for the first nine months of its fiscal year. Aozora reported that in the first three-quarters of the financial year it generated consolidated net income of 31.7bn yen and net revenue of 59.5bn yen. These figures represent 70% and 73% respectively of the annual targets, which were [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
CWB reports 2011 results under IFRS
Canadian Western Bank (CWB) has reported its quarterly and annual financial results, in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants has transitioned Canadian generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) to IFRS (for publicly accountable entities), meaning that CWB’s consolidated financial statements for the 2012 fiscal year will be made in [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Barclays enters Germany’s retail savings market
Barclays has launched LeitzinsPlus, which claims to be Germany’s first online instant-access savings account linked to the European Central Bank (ECB) rate. Interest is payable at the ECB base rate (currently 1%), plus a fixed, guaranteed margin, currently set at three years. The new offering will be managed by Barclaycard in Hamburg and is accompanied [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Hester bows to political pressure over bonus
Royal Bank of Scotland’s (RBS’s) share price will be watched closely today following the news that chief executive, Stephen Hester, has surrendered this year’s bonus, which amounts to almost £1 million in shares. Mr Hester has bowed to mounting political pressure including yesterday’s threat from Labour to bring an opposition day motion and put his [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
Government publishes Financial Services Bill
The Government has today published legislation aimed at strengthening financial regulation in the UK. According to Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mark Hoban, the Financial Services Bill sets out a “clear, coherent and comprehensive regulatory framework” that should help mitigate against future risks to stability. In brief the Bill: 1. Gives the Bank of England [...]
Categories: Banking and finance
The Bottom Line:If Mr Cable has his way...
"If Mr Cable had his way, all the big banks would be broken up and bonuses would be virtually eliminated - a sure-fire way in my view of guaranteeing an end to the UK’s ability to compete as an international financial centre. Let’s not forget that this is a man who is on record as saying that everyone who works in a bank has an ‘aristocratic lifestyle’ clearly demonstrating his lack of understanding of the sector." A tough line on bankers’ bonuses could make a brain drain of financial talent a distinct possibility, warns Paul Marsden. Read more