HSBC sells Asia banknotes business
20th Sep 2010 07:05
Global banking titan HSBC is to sell its wholesale banknotes business in Asia to United Overseas Bank (UOB). UOB is paying $15m in cash for the assets, with the transfer expected to take place in the final quarter of 2010. As part of the agreement, HSBC will also licence to UOB the technology syst
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: ENRC, Bank Commission, Vodafone...
19th Sep 2010 11:13
Sir Richard Sykes, former chairman of Glaxo Smith Kline, the drugs giant, faces the risk of being "blackballed" from the City in a growing row over a disputed African mining deal. Some of the Square Mile's biggest investors are furious with Sykes over his role as senior independent director of Eura
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Basel III, BAE Systems, Connaught...
13th Sep 2010 06:34
Financial regulators have reached a deal to force global banks to double the spare cash they hold in the biggest shake-up since the economic crisis nearly brought down the system, the Telegraph reports. The new rules, to be phased in between 2015 and 2018, demand that banks hold 4.5% of common equi
Read moreCable renews call for banks to split
8th Sep 2010 12:45
A rift could be growing within the coalition government over the future of the UK's banks after business secretary Vince Cable again called for a split of their retail and investment businesses. Commenting after the appointment of Barclays' investment bank head Bob Diamond as the bank's new chief e
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Barclays, HSBC, BP...
8th Sep 2010 06:34
The appointment of Bob Diamond as chief executive of one of Britain's biggest banks has split the coalition along party lines, it emerged last night. Downing Street and the Treasury ? both of which were told of the appointment before it was announced ? insisted that they were relaxed about the prom
Read moreLondon close: Winning streak ends
7th Sep 2010 16:48
London's leading share index gave up a winning streak that lasted all last week and continued yesterday. The day started sluggishly and continued in that vein after a lower start on Wall Street. Takeover talk provided much of the excitement, with bid speculation about engineering group Invensys an
Read moreLondon afternoon: Bid rumours relieve the gloom
7th Sep 2010 14:02
It's a case of 'another day, another bid rumour' for London, with bid speculation about engineering group Invensys and oil explorer Tullow Oil providing a bit of cheer to a subdued market. The rumour-mongers are suggesting that the UK engineering conglomerate could be the subject of a 350p per sh
Read moreHSBC chairman steps down to join government
7th Sep 2010 13:39
HSBC chairman Stephen Green is stepping down after being appointed as Trade Minister. He will step down as chairman of the bank before the end of the year, in time to take up his government role in January. HSBC said it has already started looking for a successor and was still on course to have one
Read moreHSBC's Green tipped for trade post
7th Sep 2010 09:39
Stephen Green, the chairman of HSBC, is being widely tipped to become the coalition government's new trade minister. Reports this morning suggested his appointment could be confirmed within 48 hours and possibly this afternoon. The government has been keen to recruit a high profile trade supremo t
Read moreBanks commission small business credit research
6th Sep 2010 17:01
The biggest British banks have commissioned a report that will profile the creditworthiness of their small business customers. The banks hope the report will head off criticism of their lack of lending. The banks argue that they are only turning away the risky proposals but small business organisa
Read moreLondon open: More gains for Footsie
3rd Sep 2010 09:02
Blue chips made progress early on for a sixth consecutive day, though all eyes will be on the US non-farm payrolls number at 1.30pm. US and Asian stocks made posted modest gains overnight. Autonomy is higher for a second day. Gossip doing the rounds yesterday was acquisition-hungry US software gian
Read moreLondon pre-open: No end to rally
3rd Sep 2010 07:34
Blue chips are seen gaining ground early on after last night's late charge on Wall Street, targeting a sixth consecutive day of gains. Futures prices point to an 18-point rise for London at the start of play following a 50-point jump for the Dow Jones overnight and a modest advance in the Far East
Read moreHSBC could leave UK if forced to split
3rd Sep 2010 07:23
HSBC has joined other banks in warning it could leave the UK if the Commission on Banking recommends the break-up of the country's major banks. In much more explicit comments than its rivals, Stuart Gulliver, the head of HSBC's investment banking business and a possible future chief executive of th
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: Bank of England, Food prices, HSBC...
3rd Sep 2010 06:32
A senior Bank of England official reignited the debate over levies on financial transactions yesterday, saying that policymakers needed to address the "myopia and volatility" in the markets. Andrew Haldane, executive director for financial stability at the Bank, said that disincentives may be neede
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Tesco, Burger King, BHP Billiton
2nd Sep 2010 06:03
Tesco, the UK's largest supermarket, is one of 10 bidders in the £650m auction for the south-east Asian assets of French rival Carrefour. Other bidders in the first round of bids for the stores are thought to include Casino, another French retailer, Aeon, the vast Japanese supermarket group, and Dai
Read more