Banking

BLOOMBERG UBS Group AG and Credit Suisse Group AG are opposed to a forced combination, even as scenario planning for a government-orchestrated tie-up continues, according to people with knowledge of the matter. UBS would prefer to focus on its own wealth-centric standalone strategy and is reluctant to take on risks related to Credit Suisse, the people said, asking not to ...

BLOOMBERG A trio of hawkish European Central Bank (ECB) policymakers came out in force to restate the case for hiking interest rates further, once financial-market volatility subsides. In the wake of a 50 basis-point increase accompanied by no clear signal on future moves, governors from Estonia, Lithuania, and Slovakia suggested the economy still needs another phase of tightening after global ...

BLOOMBERG Banks borrowed a combined $164.8 billion from two Federal Reserve backstop facilities in the most recent week, a sign of escalated funding strains in the aftermath of Silicon Valley Bank’s (SVB) failure. Data published by the Fed showed $152.85 billion in borrowing from the discount window  — the traditional liquidity backstop for banks — in the week ended on ...

BLOOMBERG First Republic Bank shares fell again on Friday, set for their worst week ever, as sentiment around the lender remained fragile even after proposals for $30 billion of aid from Wall Street’s biggest banks. Shares in First Republic fell as much as 15% in US premarket trading, underperforming fellow regional banks, having already fallen by a record 60% so ...

BLOOMBERG KCB Group Plc shares plunged on Thursday, heading for the lowest level since August 2020 after Kenya’s second-largest bank announced it was cutting its proposed dividend. The Nairobi-based lender posted 19% growth in net income to 40.6 billion shillings ($312.6 million) for last year, but the decision to lower the payout to 2 shillings per unit from 3 shillings ...

BLOOMBERG The European Central Bank (ECB) went ahead with a planned half-point increase in interest rates but offered few clues on what may follow amid market turmoil that roiled Credit Suisse Group AG. The deposit rate was lifted to 3% on Thursday — as officials have been flagging since their last meeting six weeks ago and as the majority of ...

BLOOMBERG Vietnam’s central bank unexpectedly cut the rate at which it lends to banks, underscoring the need to support the economy amid a bleak global outlook and slowing domestic demand. The State Bank of Vietnam reduced the discount rate to 3.5% from 4.5%, according to a statement on its website. The authority also reduced the overnight lending rate in the ...

BLOOMBERG Credit Suisse Group AG sought to arrest a collapse in investor confidence by opening a 50 billion Swiss franc ($54 billion) credit line with the country’s central bank and offering to buy back debt, as executives and government officials plot the next steps for the troubled lender. Shares in Credit Suisse initially surged as much as 40% before paring ...

BLOOMBERG The UK government will announce a raft of environmental policies by the end of March in response to US President Joe Biden’s massive package of green subsidies, several people familiar with the matter said. The plan has internally been titled “Green Day” and will include measures to protect jobs in British industries such as electric vehicle production, which may ...

BLOOMBERG The European Central Bank (ECB) should either delay or pare back this week’s planned interest-rate increase to avoid a policy error reminiscent of 2011, former Executive Board member Lorenzo Bini Smaghi told Boersen-Zeitung. The German newspaper published an interview with the Italian, the eve of a decision for which a half-point hike has been described by President Christine Lagarde ...