RBS to refer rejected business loan applicants to peer-to-peer lending
22nd Jan 2015 16:43
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has announced it will start to suggest peer-to-peer lending to rejected business loan applicants. The bank, Britain's biggest lender to small businesses, said on Thursday that from next week it expects to direct thousands of businesses towards Funding Circle, which began
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Chinese data boosts commodities and retail, Unilever sinks on dissapointing growth
20th Jan 2015 13:57
Fast-moving consumer goods giant Unilever was among the fallers after revealing slower-than-expected growth in 2014. Underlying sales were up 2.9%, faster than the markets they operate in but lower than analyst forecasts, with volumes higher by 1% and prices advancing by 1.9%. The company's core
Read moreRBS rocked by new loan mis-selling scandal, EFG compensations under review
15th Jan 2015 10:15
Another mis-selling scandal has engulfed Royal Bank of Scotland after it confessed to misleading some small business customers as part of the £2.3bn of loans the bank has made under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) scheme. RBS has said it conducted an internal investigation into its sales of t
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: RBS, BlackBerry, North Sea oil...
15th Jan 2015 06:49
RBS has admitted to mis-selling taxpayer-backed loans to small business, according to The Times. "An internal investigation at the lender has revealed serious failings in the way in which it used the Enterprise Finance Guarantee, a government scheme designed to boost lending to smaller companies," t
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Shire, Charlie Hebdo march, RBS...
12th Jan 2015 06:40
Shire has agreed to buy rare diseases specialist NPS Pharmaceuticals for $5.2bn as it bounces back from the collapse of a £32bn takeover by AbbVie, The Times reports. The company said it is "clearly a statement from us that we are committed to an independent future". "They came in their hundreds of
Read moreLondon close: Stocks end choppy session firmly lower as data disappoints
6th Jan 2015 17:19
It was a volatile day for the UK equity market with stocks swinging between losses and gains for most of the session, with a late sell-off sending the FTSE 100 firmly in the red by the close. Service-sector activity data from across the globe largely came in below expectations with weak figures from
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: Verizon-AOL, RBS, Tesco...
6th Jan 2015 06:43
Verizon Communications is in talks with AOL about a possible deal to take over the latter or set up a joint venture, The Telegraph said, citing reports. It is thought that Verizon wants to use AOL to expand its mobile video operations. RBS' deputy chief executive Chris Sullivan has left the bank "se
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Tesco, Flotations, ECB
5th Jan 2015 02:29
Tesco will scrap the system of rebates and penalty fees it uses to extract money from suppliers, the Sunday Times said. In a trading statement due on January 8th, Chief Executive Dave Lewis will replace the complex arrangements with a simple scheme based on sales volumes. The change will put pressur
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Energy stocks hit by drop in crude, Lloyds boosted by upgrade
2nd Jan 2015 14:22
Sainsbury was trading lower as hedge funds forecast that the supermarket group would be damaged by the grocery industry's escalating price war. Lansdowne Partners, Odey Asset Management and Marshall Wace all blamed the growing popularity of discounters Aldi and Lidl, who would hit profitability by f
Read moreRBS worried US fines for mortgage-backed securities may top £7bn
2nd Jan 2015 13:55
The £2bn provision set aside by Royal Bank of Scotland to pay fines in the US for marketing of toxic mortgage-backed securities could be more than three times too small, according to sources at the bank. A full settlement with US financial authorities could cost RBS upwards of £7bn, according to sen
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Chief executives, Royal Bank of Scotland, UK Politics
29th Dec 2014 07:24
A quarter of chief executives in the FTSE 100 enjoyed increases in their take-home pay of more than 30% last year despite a continuing squeeze in wages at shop-floor level. However, the report found evidence of restraint ahead: the boards of Britain's top 100 companies have set a median increase in
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Tesco, Oil explorers, Sainsbury´s
28th Dec 2014 17:17
Tesco is testing a discount format in its One Stop chain, indicating the group could be considering new ways to combat Aldi and Lidl, the Sunday Times said. Three One Stop branches have been trading as discounters with low prices and limited ranges for the past seven weeks. The trial is the idea of
Read moreLondon close: Stocks inch higher in shortened session as Santa Rally continues
24th Dec 2014 12:46
The UK stock market closed a half-session in positive territory on Christmas Eve to extend its winning streak into the seventh straight day. With trading volumes low - many European markets were already closed for Christmas - London stocks were rangebound for most of the session as investors refrain
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Russia, Sony Pictures, RBS...
24th Dec 2014 06:43
Credit rating agency Standard & Poor's has put Russia's rating on a 'negative' outlook, raising the prospect that it could downgrade the country's debt to 'junk' within weeks, The Times writes. S&P cited the "impact of the weakening economy on its financial system" as a reason for the move. Sony Pic
Read moreFCA wants banks to fund FX fines out of their bonuses
21st Dec 2014 10:49
The banks involved in the foreign exchange rigging scandal should fund their fines out of this year's bonuses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said. Citigroup, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), HSBC, JP Morgan and UBS were fined a combined £1.1bn by the FCA in November for allowing traders to
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