Bloomberg Two US banking giants are rolling out more benefits to parents juggling childcare and home schooling while keeping the companies running through the pandemic. Citigroup Inc. will offer employees discounts on test preparation and tutoring services as many continue to work from home while their kids start the new school year. Bank of America Corp. (BofA) is extending backup ...
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Goldman, Morgan Stanley face stiffest Fed capital standards
Bloomberg Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley and several foreign lenders operating in the US will face the stiffest capital demands under the Federal Reserve’s first set of big-bank requirements to incorporate the regulator’s new stress buffer. The capital levels, determined by the Fed’s most recent stress-test process, give Goldman Sachs the highest target among domestic banks, with an overall ...
Read More »Congo central bank more than doubles interest rate
Bloomberg Monetary policy makers of the Democratic Republic of Congo more than doubled the central bank’s benchmark interest rate amid a depreciating currency and the mounting inflationary pressures. The rate was increased to 18.5% from 7.5%, central bank Governor Deogratias Mutombo said in a statement shared by a spokesman from the institution. It’s at the highest level since April 2018. ...
Read More »Citi’s $900m ‘clerical error’ worst Wall Street bungle in ages
Bloomberg Even for Citigroup Inc., it was big money. The loan operations staff at the New York bank wired $900 million, seemingly on behalf of Revlon Inc., to lenders of the troubled cosmetics giant controlled by billionaire Ron Perelman. It was a mistake for the ages — a “clerical error,†as Citigroup told lenders — that’s now plunged the bank ...
Read More »Big banks in US, Europe hire 19,000 people
Bloomberg The biggest US and European banks added 19,000 people to their payrolls in first half of year as demand for loans and other services surged during the pandemic and planned staff cuts were largely put on hold. Eight of the top 15 firms increased headcount this year through June, while only four reduced it. Three lenders’ staff levels were ...
Read More »India shadow banks show signs of revival on stimulus measures
Bloomberg The fortunes of India’s shadow lenders are showing signs of turning, suggesting stimulus measures from policy makers will help the troubled sector weather some of the fallout from the pandemic. Premiums that investors seek to buy AAA rated five-year bonds of non-bank lenders over similar-maturity government notes narrowed the most last month since at least 2012, helping a gauge ...
Read More »Singapore regulator warns of more bank job losses in H2
Bloomberg Singapore’s financial-services sector, which accounts for 4.5% of total employment, may see more job losses during the second half of the year as the country goes through its worst recession ever, the central bank warned on Wednesday. Banks, insurers and other financial institutions held up well during the first six months when the sector created about 1,500 jobs and ...
Read More »Barclays shuffles top bankers to beef up sustainability unit
Bloomberg Barclays Plc is moving some top bankers to its new sustainability teams as it seeks to gain a larger foothold in providing financing and advice for activities that help mitigate climate change. Justin Peagram, previously a managing director in the natural-resources group, will now focus on sustainable energy and other emerging-growth areas as part of the sustainable and impact-banking ...
Read More »RBNZ is expanding bond purchases to aid recovery
Bloomberg New Zealand’s central bank expanded its quantitative easing program and said it’s open to cutting interest rates into negative territory as a new coronavirus outbreak threatens the economic recovery. The Reserve Bank increased its Large Scale Asset Purchase program to as much as NZ$100 billion from NZ$60 billion, and extended it until June 2022, according to a statement on ...
Read More »ABN Amro cuts a third of investment bank after virus losses
Bloomberg ABN Amro Bank NV will cut its investment bank by about a third and shut down lending outside of Europe as the Dutch bank tries to turn around business hit hard by the market chaos caused by the coronavirus crisis. ABN Amro will stop providing corporate finance outside Europe and exit trade and commodity financing altogether, the Dutch bank ...
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