Friends raids Lloyds for new chief
25th Jan 2011 07:11
Friends Provident, the trading business of life insurance consolidator Resolution, has appointed Andy Briggs as chief executive with current incumbent Trevor Matthews moving to a new post of vice chairman. Friends said that Matthews has decided to move back to Australia within the next three years
Read moreLondon close: Shares jump after sluggish start
24th Jan 2011 16:46
Shares put their early indecisiveness behind them to close with good gains after a decent start on Wall Street. Banks were weak after comments by the head of the Independent Banking Commission over stricter capital rules and possible separation of the retail and investment bank arms. The political
Read moreLondon afternoon: Stocks edge higher
24th Jan 2011 14:49
After a morning of indecision, leading shares pushed on over the lunch time session, despite the weakness of the banking sector. Banks are weak after comments by the head of the Independent Banking Commission over stricter capital rules and possible separation of the retail and investment bank arms
Read moreSector movers: Pharmaceuticals up, banks down
24th Jan 2011 14:27
Pharmaceuticals and biotechnology is the best performing sector today. Source Bioscience put in a solid trading performance during November and December 2010 and full year 2010 results should be in line with market expectations. "Both our LifeSciences and PharmaBiotech divisions demonstrated double
Read moreNGnooncall:Equity markets fairly quiet on slow day for data
24th Jan 2011 13:40
UK UK markets have traded fairly quietly today with the banking sector leading the fallers after the report at the weekend by Sir John Vickers, chairman of the Independent Commission on Banking, said the financial crisis had exposed a "damagingly rickety structure" at the heart of the financial syst
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Banks turn lower
24th Jan 2011 12:50
RBS and Lloyds are both lower after comments by the head of the Independent Banking Commission over stricter capital rules and the possible separation of the retail and investment bank arms. The political problems in Ireland have also unsettled financials. Goldman Sachs has downgraded engineer In
Read moreLondon midday: Banks hold back FTSE 100
24th Jan 2011 12:13
Shares are still seeking direction as banks fall back. The sector is weak after comments by the head of the Independent Banking Commission over stricter capital rules and possible separation of the retail and investment bank arms. The political problems in Ireland have also unsettled the mood. RBS
Read moreLondon open: Cautious start to week
24th Jan 2011 08:51
London is muddling along in the early exchanges despite the decent finish to last week on Wall Street. Banks are weak after comments by the head of the Independent Banking Commission over stricter capital rules and possible separation of the retail and investment bank arms. The political problems i
Read moreProject Merlin progress stalls
23rd Jan 2011 14:29
Talks between the UK's big banks and the government over the amount they will lend to small businesses have stalled, according to reports over the weekend. Project Merlin, as the plan is known, had been tipped to be unveiled possibly as early as Monday, but last minute hitches mean an agreement may
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Bank break-ups, Lloyds, Double-dip...
23rd Jan 2011 10:01
A break-up of Britain's banks came a step closer yesterday after the head of a government financial commission said he was likely to recommend splitting their operations. Sir John Vickers, chairman of the Independent Commission on Banking, said the financial crisis had exposed a "damagingly rickety
Read moreLondon midday: RBS leads the way
21st Jan 2011 12:08
Royal Bank of Scotland is leading the top share index higher after the FT reported that bank executives and officials at the Treasury are talking about ways for the bank to exit the toxic asset scheme. Fellow bank Lloyds is also going well. Weather conditions in Australia have improved enough to
Read moreLondon open: Footsie recoups losses
21st Jan 2011 08:53
London's leading shares have claw backed a small proportion of yesterday's heavy losses, encouraged by the late rally on Wall Street yesterday. Royal Bank of Scotland is leading the way forward after the FT reported that bank executives and officials at the Treasury are talking about ways for the
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: BP, Smith & Nephew, Interest rates...
16th Jan 2011 10:58
Russia's Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, has promised to give BP "the most favourable tax treatment" in the Arctic as its £10bn deal with the Kremlin was greeted with cautious optimism by investors yesterday. Late on Friday night, BP agreed to issue £5bn of shares to Russian state-backed oil compa
Read moreLondon close: Footsie scuppered by Tesco
13th Jan 2011 16:51
London struggled all day after a grim performance by supermarket Tesco and disappointing US unemployment data in the afternoon. The Bank of England's decision to leave interest rates at 0.5% and the asset purchase programme unchanged was as expected. US shares fell back, with the Dow down 14 point
Read moreLloyds boss Daniels to pocket £2m bonus
12th Jan 2011 12:35
Eric Daniels, the head of Lloyds Banking Group, will receive a bonus of £2m this year, according to reports. He's turned down his annual reward for the past two years but Daniels, who leaves the part state-owned bank in March, is unlikely to this time, says the BBC. The 59-year-old, responsible fo
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