Banking

Bloomberg The Bank of England doesn’t need to rush to raise interest rates until the uncertainty of Brexit lifts, according to policy maker Michael Saunders. In a speech in London, Saunders, considered one of the most hawkish members of the Monetary Policy Committee, said that tame inflation and a slowdown in growth meant officials could adopt a wait-and-see approach as ...

Bloomberg South Africa’s central bank wants to see sustainably lower inflation to ensure cheaper borrowing costs in the economy, Governor Lesetja Kganyago said. “We have indicated that a consistently lower rate in the near term, at the midpoint of our target band — 4.5 percent — would lower long-term interest rates and be more supportive of balance in the economy,” ...

Bloomberg A merger of Deutsche Bank AG and Commerzbank AG is shaping up as the most likely endgame as Germany’s largest listed lenders are running out of time to show they can grow as standalone companies. The banks are intensifying informal talks as their turnaround efforts sputter, according to a person familiar with the matter. While there’s no formal mandate ...

Bloomberg Saudi Arabia is considering plans to increase an Islamic tax paid by local banks to as much as 20 percent, or double the current rate, according to people with knowledge of the matter, as the world’s biggest oil exporter seeks to bolster alternative sources of revenue. The tax authority is in talks with lenders about raising the religious levy, ...

Bloomberg Euro-area officials set out to defend their latest monetary-policy action, stressing their package of new long-term loans and revised guidance was an appropriate response to the region’s economic slowdown. “Hard data indicated that a reaction was needed,” Lithuanian Governing Council member Vitas Vasiliauskas told reporters in Vilnius. “It was a natural preemptive move.” Recent data have painted a gloomy ...

Bloomberg Absa Group Ltd. has overhauled the executive management of its corporate and investment banking unit as part of an ongoing group-wide revamp to draw more revenue from operations in Africa. The team of eight, which includes former joint-chief executive officers of the division, Mike Harvey and Temi Ofong, now have a mandate to drive business across the entire African ...

Bloomberg German commercial real estate lender Aareal Bank AG took the hardest hit to date in a far-reaching European Central Bank investigation of how banks gauge risk. Aareal’s key capital ratio dropped by at least 3.5 percentage points as a result of the review, the most among 18 publicly traded banks that have disclosed the impact in statements and conference ...

Bloomberg Italian financial police are demanding Swiss lenders disclose the names of bankers working in Italy, setting up a potential clash with regulators after UBS Group AG was hit with a record fine by French authorities. The Guardia di Finanza has sent a letter to Swiss lenders asking for a list of all their Italian units, data on local relationship ...

Bloomberg A year after India’s central bank tightened the screws on companies delaying debt payments, the nation’s Supreme Court is poised to begin hearing arguments on whether the regulator’s diktat applies across industries. Hanging in the balance is the fate of more than $25 billion of loans to power producers. They are among parties contesting the central bank directive that ...

Bloomberg Japanese banks’ quest for yield is creating more turbulence, with Mizuho Financial Group Inc. announcing another round of losses on its foreign-bond holdings as part of a surprise writedown that will severely curtail full-year profit. Mizuho slashed its net income forecast by 86 percent on Wednesday after booking 680 billion yen ($6.1 billion) of charges tied to business restructuring ...