Banking

BLOOMBERG China’s biggest lenders, including Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC), eked out profit growth in the first quarter of 2023 as they wrestled with shrinking margins and the lingering economic impact of China’s exit from Covid zero. Net income at ICBC rose 0.02% to 90.2 billion yuan ($13 billion) from the year-earlier period, according to an exchange ...

BLOOMBERG The slump in the yen spurred by the latest Bank of Japan (BOJ) decision drove the currency to its weakest level since just after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc in 2008. The euro-yen cross rate rose as much as 1.8% to 150.43, a level last seen in September that year, as the Japanese currency dived against all ...

BLOOMBERG US bank deposits rose in the latest week, a welcome break in a slide that’s seen cash flow into higher-yielding money-market funds amid unease about smaller lenders. Loans also increased, suggesting credit conditions are stable despite several recent bank failures. Deposits rose by $21.1 billion in the week ended on April 19, according to seasonally adjusted data from the ...

BLOOMBERG First Republic Bank’s week of harrowing stock drops and urgent work towards a deal to shore up its balance sheet ended with the lender’s fate in limbo. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC), keeping tabs on the bank’s deposits and funding, hasn’t reached a decision on intervening at the troubled lender, according to people with direct knowledge of the ...

BLOOMBERG  First Republic Bank is exploring divesting $50 billion to $100 billion of assets as the beleaguered lender attempts to rescue itself from the turmoil that engulfed the industry in March. The sales, which include long-dated mortgages and securities, are aimed at reducing the mismatch between the bank’s assets and liabilities — one of the factors that has left First ...

BLOOMBERG  Deutsche Bank AG plans to cut about 800 senior back-office staff as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Christian Sewing steps up cost reductions amid a slowdown in the trading business that has fuelled much of the lender’s growth. Deutsche Bank announced the steps alongside first-quarter earnings that showed revenue from fixed-income trading slumped 17%, one of the worst performances among ...

BLOOMBERG  Citigroup Inc’s India unit is planning to offer sustainability-linked deposits in the coming months to its corporate and institutional clients, making it the first-of-its-kind product offering in the country, according to people familiar with the matter. Money raised from these deposits will be invested by Citi to help multinational customers meet their environmental, social and governance (ESG) obligations in ...

BLOOMBERG  An HSBC Holdings Plc shareholder in Hong Kong is lobbying institutional shareholders to vote in favour of a proposal to restructure the lender’s business at its annual general meeting on May 5. Ken Lui, leader of the “Spin Off HSBC Asia Concern Group,” has hired Alliance Advisors, a firm specialising in shareholder engagement to help in identifying and contacting ...

BLOOMBERG  A group of lenders led by the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) has commenced an up to $2.75 billion leveraged loan sale supporting Blackstone Inc’s deal for an Emerson Electric Co unit, according to people familiar with the matter. The new loan is part of a $5.5 billion debt package being brought to public markets that would replace both ...

BLOOMBERG UBS Group AG warned that wealthy clients are turning increasingly risk-averse, adding to challenges for Switzerland’s largest bank as it embarks on the complex task of integrating Credit Suisse Group AG. Shares of UBS fell as much as 5.4% in Zurich trading after the lender reported the weakest quarterly profit in more than three years, along with an outlook ...