Banking

Bloomberg Here’s another reason banks should fear the likes of Amazon.com Inc.: A new survey shows consumers are eager to see technology titans take on finance. Nearly 60 percent of US bank customers are willing to try a financial product from tech firms they already use, according to a survey conducted by consult-ant Bain & Co. For younger respondents, the ...

Bloomberg China’s financial regulators proposed sweeping rules to curb risks in the country’s $15 trillion of asset-management products as leaders move to tighten supervision and break an implicit guarantee that’s driven investment into such vehicles. Financial institutions should offer yields based on the net asset value of the products they issue, to reflect the risks and return of the underlying ...

Bloomberg A former HSBC Holdings Plc banker filed a lawsuit after being told he couldn’t have his bonus because he helped clients cheat on their taxes. The bank responded by counter-suing him for wasting its time. Rajesh Parmar is suing HSBC Private Bank UK for more than 1.8 million pounds ($2.4 million) in unpaid bonuses and damages, accusing it of ...

Bloomberg Lloyds Banking Group Plc is in exclusive talks to sell and lease back its City of London headquarters to a company linked to China’s Hengli Group, two people with knowledge of the deal said. The Chinese conglomerate offered about 150 million pounds ($198 million) for the 25 Gresham Street building, the people said, asking not to be identified because ...

Bloomberg About a third of the customers queuing at La Maison du Bitcoin’s teller windows in Paris aren’t speculating on the value of the cryptocurrency. They’re sending digital money home to Africa. “In many countries in Africa, there are far more cellphones than bank accounts,” said Manuel Valente, co-founder of La Maison. “For bitcoin, all you need is a phone.” ...

Bloomberg China’s central bank said it will closely monitor liquidity conditions amid its campaign to reduce debt levels, in a quarte-rly report where it reiterated a commitment to “prudent and neutral” monetary policy. The People’s Bank of China seeks an “optimal” environment to help stabilize economic growth, while facilitating dele-veraging, curbing bubbles and preventing risks, according to a quarterly report ...

Bloomberg Canadian inflation eased for the first time in four months in October as gasoline prices fell and the economy showed few signs of price pressure, bolstering the view the central bank can afford to wait before it tightens policy further. Annual inflation decelerated to 1.4 percent, from 1.6 percent in September, Statistics Canada reported in Ottawa. That matched the ...

Bloomberg New rules that were supposed to protect depositors may end up making them vulnerable to fraudsters. Changing the account data of about a million clients at banks including Barclays Plc and HSBC Holdings Plc is a golden opportunity for hackers, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has warned banks. The FCA has briefed lenders about its concerns, as British banks ...

Bloomberg Polish wages grew at the fastest pace in more than five years, casting fresh doubt over the central bank’s ability to keep a lid on inflation. The readout showed a 7.4 percent wage increase in October from a year earlier, exposing a steeper acceleration than forecast by 23 of the 24 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Wage growth was distorted ...

Bloomberg It’s only a matter of time before central banks adopt blockchain to settle high-value, interbank fund transfers, according to the head of Ripple, whose technology has won support from former Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke. As the technology, which is based on encrypted distributed ledgers, catches on, central banks around the world will be afraid to miss out, Ripple ...