Banking

  BLOOMBERG China raised its gold reserves for a ninth straight month in July as central bank purchases continue to underpin prices of the precious metal. Bullion held by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) rose by 740,000 troy ounces, the central bank said. That’s equivalent to about 23 tons. Total stockpiles now sit at 2,137 tons, with around 188 ...

BLOOMBERG Chalk it up to the heat, to late-summer doldrums, or to the phases of the moon, but the usually volatile Bitcoin hasn’t been acting in its typical sporadic ways of late. The largest digital currency has gone eight trading sessions without a 1% move, the longest such stretch since the start of January, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. ...

BLOOMBERG The Bank of Japan (BOJ) came into the market for the second time to slow gains in benchmark sovereign bond yields, underscoring its determination to curb sharp moves in rates even as it makes room for them to rise. The buying operation also highlighted the challenge investors face interpreting a rates regime that is built on gray lines to ...

Bloomberg ING Groep NV reported second quarter profit that beat analyst estimates as it set aside less money for soured loans. Net income of €2.16 billion ($2.36 billion) in the second quarter compared with expectations for profit of €1.72 billion, the bank said. ING added €98 million to its loan loss provisions in the quarter, well below the €383 million ...

BLOOMBERG The Bank of England (BOE) raised interest rates to a new 15-year high, warning that its fight against inflation may require tighter borrowing conditions for a prolonged period. The UK central bank lifted its key rate a quarter point to 5.25%, a smaller hike than the half-point increase delivered in June. Investors and economists had expected the move and ...

BLOOMBERG Mexico’s inflation extended its gradual slowdown in early July, roughly in line with forecasts, helped by double-digit interest rates and the strongest peso since 2015. Consumer prices rose 4.79% in the first half of the month compared to the same period a year earlier, down from 4.93% in late June, the national statistics institute reported. The result was just ...

BLOOMBERG The greenback is set for its biggest weekly gain in nearly five months as bullish traders offered respite for a currency that has been battered in July. A Bloomberg gauge of the dollar’s strength advanced more than 1% in the five-day stretch as the greenback clawed its way back from the 15-month lows it touched amid last week’s selling ...

BLOOMBERG After a year dominated by direct lenders, investment banks are now winning some bigger deals in the buyout financing market. Among them are the $9.4 billion of debt financing backing GTCR’s purchase of a majority stake in Worldpay Inc — the largest buyout financing since Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter last year. A group of banks are selling the ...

BLOOMBERG Nigeria’s official currency exchange rate is once again widening a gap with the parallel-market rate, shrugging off a brief convergence spurred by central bank actions. The naira closed at 743 per dollar on the platform accepted as the official rate by the central bank, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That’s about 11% stronger than the 834 a dollar ...

BLOOMBERG Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) wants to do money managers’ trading for them with a new outsourcing service aimed at helping buy-side firms cut costs. The move builds on the trading that BNY Mellon already handles for $1.8 trillion of assets it manages, the firm said in a statement. The bank will target current and prospective clients, primarily ...