Bloomberg UniCredit SpA withdrew from a possible deal to take over Russian lender Otkritie Bank FC, with Chief Executive Officer Andrea Orcel signalling that the military build-up in the region was a factor in the decision. “Given the geopolitical environment we decided to withdraw from the data room,” Orcel said in a media call. “The combined bank would have …

  Bloomberg Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd.’s profit rises 15% in the third quarter on a cut in provisioning and higher net interest earnings aided by an easing of the pandemic. Net income stood at 21.3 billion rupees ($284 million) in quarter ended December compared with 18.5 billion rupees a year ago. That beat an average estimate of 20.7 billion rupees …

  Bloomberg DBS Group Holdings Ltd. agreed to buy Citigroup Inc.’s consumer banking assets in Taiwan, as Southeast Asia’s largest lender pushes ahead with plans to boost its regional presence. The Singapore bank will pay cash for Citi Consumer Taiwan’s net assets plus a premium of S$956 million ($707 million), which will be determined at the close of the deal …

  Bloomberg American Express Co is putting the pandemic behind it, boosting forecasts for revenue and profit after spending on its cards surged to a record. Revenue will climb as much as 20% this year while earnings could reach $9.25 to $9.65 a share, the company said in a statement. AmEx has long said 2022 would be the year it …

Bloomberg Excessively loud, exceedingly rare, and bursting at the seams with Italian luster, the Maserati MC12 is considered by collectors to be the most desirable car ever produced by the 107-year-old brand. Values surge easily past $2 million for the 50 street versions and 12 racing versions produced for only four months between 2004 and 2005. The modern version of …

  Bloomberg Google will invest as much as $1 billion in India’s second-largest mobile phone operator, as firms race to offer inexpensive data and digital offerings in the only billion-people-plus market still open to foreign companies. Alphabet Inc, which owns the Google search engine, will pay $700 million for a 1.28% stake in Bharti Airtel Ltd., the New Delhi-based company …

  Bloomberg Lamborghini is gearing up for the final lap of combustion engines powering coveted models like the Aventador as the sports-car maker switches its line-up to plug-in hybrids. The Volkswagen AG brand with the track-focused Aventador, Huracan and Urus SUV models will unveil its first production car with a plug next year before electrifying its full offering by 2024. …

Bloomberg WhatsApp, the popular messaging app owned by Meta Platforms Inc, is pushing its privacy features in a new US marketing campaign that compares a standard text message to mail that was opened before it was delivered. The campaign promotes end-to-end encryption, technology that WhatsApp uses so that user messages only exist on the device where a message was sent …

  GENEVA / WAM The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has urged governments to accelerate the relaxation of travel restrictions as Covid-19 continues to evolve from the pandemic to endemic stage. Iata called for removing all travel barriers (including quarantine and testing) for those fully vaccinated with a WHO-approved vaccine, enabling quarantine-free travel for non-vaccinated travellers with a negative pre-departure …

  Bloomberg Japan’s coal imports are poised to jump to the highest level in at least two years as the nation’s utilities turn to the dirtiest fossil fuel as a replacement for expensive liquefied natural gas. More than 17.3 million tons of coal will be delivered to the country this month, said Edwin Toh, a dry bulk manager at energy …