April, 2016

• 9 April

  ECB’s Mersch warns of returns’ dip in Central Bank Action

  BLOOMBERG Central banks’ extraordinary measures to spur growth may eventually show diminishing returns while a key part of the European Central Bank’s quantitative easing programme carries a “certain risk” that has been mitigated, ECB Executive Board member Yves Mersch said. Mersch, in a speech to the Ambrosetti Workshop in Cernobbio Italy, on Saturday, reviewed the various policy instruments that the ...

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• 9 April

  Wells Fargo doles out $1.2bn to settle crisis-era mortgage claims

  

  New York / AFP Wells Fargo, an American multinational banking company, will pay $1.2 billion to refund US agencies for wrongly certifying bad loans for federal home insurance ahead of the 2008 housing bust, the Department of Justice announced. The settlement resolves charges that Wells Fargo, a giant in the US mortgage lending, employed shoddy underwriting practices to drive up ...

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• 9 April

  Goldman Sachs pays CEO Blankfein $22.6mn for 2015

  

  Reuters Goldman Sachs Group Inc paid Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein $22.6 million for 2015, according to a regulatory filing, marking his first pay decline in the last four years. Blankfein received $24 million for 2014. On top of his salary and other awards, Blankfein will be eligible to receive a total of $7 million based on his and the bank’s ...

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• 9 April

  Dimon’s call for truce with small banks gets a ‘no thanks’

  

  Bloomberg Thanks, but no thanks. That was the response of small banks after Jamie Dimon called for a truce this week between large and small lenders. The JPMorgan Chase & Co. chief executive officer said the industry needs to work together, particularly in Washington, to achieve its policy goals with Congress and regulators. “Just because Jamie Dimon says ‘let’s sing ...

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• 9 April

  This Spanish port is a ‘smart city’ lab

  

  Santander, Spain / AFP In Spain’s historic port of Santander, parking is no longer a headache, rubbish bins never overflow and grass is watered only when needed since this northern resort became a testing ground for “smart cities” around the world. Thousands of sensors have transformed the metropolis, known for the grand hotels and high-end casinos lining its beach on ...

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• 9 April

  Happy Birthday, Joseph Pulitzer!

  

  Ritika Sharma / Emirates Business It’s a day of celebration for us – the journalists, especially the ones who are so by passion. Today, in the year 1847, a boy was born in Hungary, who changed the very meaning of journalism. Defying all odds — from being rejected for US army due to health issues to learning a language he ...

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• 9 April

  Microsoft BUILD: There is much to chat about

  

  Relaxnews Beyond the razzle-dazzle of the company’s new Hololens, the biggest takeaway for consumers following the conclusion of this year’s Microsoft BUILD developers’ conference is the importance that the company is putting on ‘chat’ as a platform. As consumers’ primary screens get smaller — no matter how big phablets become, they’re still less cumbersome and more portable than the average ...

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• 9 April

  China’s cooling on the iPhone

  

  Relaxnews New data from Kantar Worldpanel shows that for the first time in almost two years well-heeled Chinese consumers are looking beyond Apple for a premium phone or phablet. “For the first time since August 2014, iOS share did not grow in urban China in the three months ending February,” said Tamsin Timpson, strategic insight director at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech ...

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• 9 April

  VR’s success — Is it virtually assured?

  

  Relaxnews Unlike when Google Glass was first unleashed on the world, the hype surrounding virtual reality and headsets from the likes of Oculus and HTC is clearly not misplaced. According to the latest data from research firm Strategy Analytics, revenues generated from headset sales alone are expected to generate some US$895 million before the end of 2016. However, the cutting-edge ...

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• 9 April

  Roku announces new streaming stick

  

  Relaxnews Home media company Roku is all set to launch its new Streaming Stick later in April. It’s both smaller and eight times as powerful than its predecessor with a new private listening feature. Private listening means that the Roku Streaming Stick can send audio to a nearby iOS or Android device via the Roku Mobile App. Plug in a ...

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