Bloomberg Deutsche Bank AG just ended a roller-coaster week. June doesn’t look any less harrowing. Shares of Europe’s largest investment bank are trading near a record low, as short sellers pile on and credit derivative traders once again signal doubts about the firm’s health. It’s part of a painful pattern for the bank and its investors: Another spate of bad ...
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Deutsche Bank cut by S&P in latest blow for CEO’s revamp
Bloomberg Deutsche Bank AG’s new chief executive officer, Christian Sewing, suffered a fresh setback in his efforts to reinvigorate Europe’s largest investment bank as S&P Global Ratings cut the lender’s credit rating. S&P reduced the rating by one notch to BBB+, the third-lowest investment grade, citing “significant execution risk†after several management changes and strategy updates in past years. Shares ...
Read More »UK banks’ $3 billion overdraft business faces FCA overhaul
Bloomberg The UK markets regulator began toughening rules on banks’ 2.3 billion-pound ($3 billion) overdraft business, while leaving more “radical options†for later. Lenders would need to make overdraft fees clearer and alert customers to potential charges under proposals the Financial Conduct Authority. The London-based regulator said it will now consider stiffer measures such as banning fixed fees and tackling ...
Read More »Draghi’s understudy starts as ECB navigates Italian turmoil
Bloomberg The new man who would step into Mario Draghi’s shoes in an emergency has just taken office. Former Spanish Finance Minister Luis de Guindos started his job as European Central Bank vice president. He replaces Vitor Constancio on the same day that the Frankfurt-based institution celebrates its 20th anniversary, in troubled times. Guindos might find himself in a position ...
Read More »Scotiabank looks to tap brakes on deals after six-month buying binge
Bloomberg After five deals in six months, Bank of Nova Scotia is taking a breather. “We’ve got a lot of work to do in terms of execution and integrations now, so I think we’ll be fairly quiet on the acquisition front from here on in,†Chief Executive Officer Brian Porter told BNN Bloomberg in a TV interview set to air ...
Read More »Botswana urges tax reform before diamonds dwindle
Bloomberg Botswana relies on the gemstones for almost a fifth of its gross domestic product and used the revenue generated from sales to transform the nation from an economic backwater into one of the continent’s wealthiest societies. However, their role is set to diminish over the next 20 years and successive governments have struggled to diversify the economy. Although the ...
Read More »Crisis-weary global central banks brace for turmoil
Bloomberg Just when central bankers thought they were about to get out of the business of emergency economic stimulus, jittery financial markets are threatening to pull some of them back in. For the European Central Bank, the latest threat requiring vigilance is political turmoil in Italy that’s reviving memories of the debt crisis that threatened to fracture the euro area. ...
Read More »Bank Indonesia’s new governor stamps his mark with rate hike
Bloomberg Indonesia’s new central bank chief raised interest rates at an early policy meeting on Wednesday, moving swiftly to counter an emerging-market selloff that’s shaken the nation’s currency and bonds. Less than a week in office, Governor Perry Warjiyo led the board in increasing the seven-day reverse repurchase rate by 25 basis points to 4.75 percent, in line with almost ...
Read More »Hawks take hold in India as RBI’s monetary policy looks set to tighten
Bloomberg The interest-rate cycle in India is turning. The central bank may be set to tighten policy next week to keep inflation in check and stem the declines in the rupee, if the rate-market moves are any indication. The Reserve Bank of India hasn’t tinkered with rates since August, and even cut inflation projections last month, raising expectations that borrowing ...
Read More »Deutsche Bank staff ‘to learn their fates’ by July
Bloomberg If you’re at Deutsche Bank AG and haven’t already been fired, you’re likely to find out next month if you will. The bank will have completed the “vast majority†of front-office job cuts by the end of June, Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing said at a conference in New York, adding that 600 staff have already left the Corporate ...
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