Santander nears RBS branch buy
3rd Aug 2010 11:40
Spanish bank Santander is expanding its overseas empire with the acquisition of 318 branches being sold by government-owned Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). The sale, thought likely to make about £2bn, is part of a deal agreed with the European Commission as RBS's punishment for borrowing billions fro
Read moreLondon close: Footsie fights back
3rd Aug 2010 09:28
Footsie fought hard to finish in the blue after easing back following yesterday's surge, and was just a whisker short of positive territory at trading's close. An improvement on Wall Street after a shaky start breathed life into London's leading share index. Insurance colossus Aviva , scheduled to
Read moreSector movers: HSBC kicks off banks' results with a bang
2nd Aug 2010 15:19
The banking sector has jumped on soaring profits from HSBC. It gave a signal that the banking sector may be returning to normality after the credit crisis as it posted interim profits that more than doubled on the back of a sharp reduction in bad debts. In the half year to June 30, the bank saw pre
Read moreLondon open: Strong start for Footsie
2nd Aug 2010 08:53
Banks and miners are in favour this morning, helping Footsie make a bright start. The banks' interim results season kicks off later today with HSBC's first half figures and predictions at the weekend were for strong numbers across the sector. Lloyds, Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland are all hig
Read moreBanks chided again on small cap lending
1st Aug 2010 18:34
Britain's banks have again been warned over bonuses and lending to small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) with the top four tipped to post over £8bn in collective first half profits this week. In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, UK chancellor George Osborne said the the government would not tol
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Bank profits, BP, ITV
1st Aug 2010 11:59
Royal Bank Of Scotland could break back into the black this week, boosting hopes that taxpayers could make a profitable exit from the government's bank bailouts. Analysts expect RBS to post a pre-tax profit of about £200m for the first six months of the year, ending a two-year run of multi-billion
Read moreFinancial News: Banks Seize EUR50B Of Private Equity-Backed Cos
1st Aug 2010 00:01
By Toby Lewis Of FINANCIAL NEWS Banks are finally getting tough with private equity. They have taken control of almost EUR50 billion ($65 billion) of private equity-backed companies in Europe since the beginning of 2009 as a result of those companies defaulting on their debt. This activi
Read moreEARNINGS PREVIEW:UK Banks 1H Good On Charges, Hit By Mkt Woes
29th Jul 2010 15:24
By Patricia Kowsmann Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES TAKING THE PULSE: U.K. banks will likely report higher pretax profit for the first half of the year on lower impairment charges, although investment-banking activities could disappoint following a shaky second quarter, analysts say. "Overall, t
Read moreMetro Bank Opens Its Door In Bid To Change Face Of UK Banking
29th Jul 2010 11:28
By Patricia Kowsmann Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Metro Bank PLC, the brainchild of U.S. entrepreneur Vernon Hill, opened its first branch Thursday in a bid to become a major player in the U.K., but banking experts said its success will depend on how much emphasis customers wi
Read moreRBS, Barclays, Lloyds Near Deal On Connaught Cash Injection - FT
29th Jul 2010 01:43
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES RBS, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group are close to a deal that would inject cash into U.K. support services firm Connaught PLC (CNT.LN), the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources. Terms for the injection were unclear, the paper said on its web site.
Read more2nd UPDATE: Derwent London Adds To Portfolio With GBP146M Buy
28th Jul 2010 13:11
(Adds Lloyds Banking comment.) By Anita Likus Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Landlord and developer Derwent London PLC (DLN.LN) said Wednesday that it is stepping into the market for the first time in three years with the GBP146 million purchase of a building at one of Lond
Read moreCORRECT:INTERVIEW:Rathbones Interested In More Lloyds-Style Buys
28th Jul 2010 12:58
("=INTERVIEW: Rathbones Interested In More Lloyds-Style Buys," published at 0835 GMT, misstated the amount of funds in the second paragraph. The error also appeared in the third paragraph of "Rathbone Brothers 1H Pretax Profit +11%; Confident Of 2H Growth," published at 0635 GMT. The correct version
Read moreUPDATE: Derwent London Adds To Portfolio With GBP146M Purchase
28th Jul 2010 12:07
(Adds detail and comment.) By Anita Likus Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Landlord and developer Derwent London PLC (DLN.LN) Wednesday stepped into the market for the first time in three years with the GBP146 million purchase of a building at one of London's busiest shopping
Read morePRESS RELEASE: S&P Puts 6 Rtgs On Watch Neg In UK Credit Card ABS Trust Arran
28th Jul 2010 12:00
The following is a press release from Standard & Poor's: OVERVIEW -- These rating actions follow our review of the latest performance information for these transactions. -- We have placed on CreditWatch negative our ratings on certain notes in Arran Funding's series 2005-B and 2007-B and
Read moreMARKET TALK: Banks Continue Their Advance; A Change In Trend?
28th Jul 2010 10:59
0959 GMT [Dow Jones] The Stoxx Europe 600 banks index +0.6% at 226.78, having added around 7.5% of gains since the release of the EU-wide stress tests and the relaxation of the Basel III capital requirements. After years of underperformance, and with most investors (apparently) still underweight, a
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