February, 2021

• 2 February

  BofA clients with $561bn say Bitcoin is most crowded trade

  

  Bloomberg For the first time since 2017, Bank of America Corp. (BofA) clients with $561 billion combined say Bitcoin is the world’s most crowded trade as speculative euphoria hits Wall Street. Investors surveyed by the investment bank see signs that long positions in the largest digital currency are reaching unprecedented levels, while retail traders and institutional names join the crypto …

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• 2 February

  HDFC faces external tech audit

  Bloomberg India’s banking regulator has appointed an external firm to audit the technology infrastructure of the country’s biggest private-sector bank, a rare move that follows a penalty for repeated outages. HDFC Bank Ltd. will “extend its cooperation” to the auditor, the Mumbai-based lender said in an exchange filing on Tuesday. The bank will pay for the audit, it said. The …

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• 2 February

  HSBC to set up new office in China’s Greater Bay Area

  

  Bloomberg HSBC Holdings Plc will establish an office to spearhead its strategy in China’s fast-growing Greater Bay Area, stepping up its bet on the world’s second-largest economy. Daniel Chan, currently head of business banking at HSBC in Hong Kong, was named head of the unit, which will oversee the strategy to “capture opportunities” in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau, the …

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• 2 February

  Tanzania’s central bank urges lenders to slash costs

  Bloomberg Tanzania’s central bank ordered the nation’s lenders to deal with souring loans and slash costs, threatening jobs in the latest industry reforms announced by President John Magufuli’s government. Bank of Tanzania gave lenders until the end of 2022 to reduce their cost-to-income ratios to below 55% and to cut non-performing loans to below 5% of their books, according to …

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• 2 February

  Apple sells $14b of bonds as share buybacks seen rising

  

  Bloomberg Apple Inc. has sold $14 billion of bonds to take advantage of cheap borrowing costs, tapping the market for a third time since May as the company looks to return more cash to shareholders. The company issued debt in six parts. The longest portion of the offering, a 40-year security, will yield 95 basis points above Treasuries, after initially …

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• 2 February

  Stocks climb on tech, stimulus bets; silver fall

  

  Bloomberg Global stocks climbed on renewed hopes for stimulus, progress on vaccinations and receding concerns about volatile retail trading. Silver pulled back from an eight-year high. Europe’s Stoxx 600 Index gained around 1%, with technology shares outperforming ahead of earnings from Amazon.com Inc. and Google’s parent Alphabet Inc. BP Plc dropped after posting results that fell short of expectations on …

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• 2 February

  Oil climbs with supply curbs, strong equities lifting market

  

  Bloomberg Oil rose, following back-to-back weekly declines, as broader markets rallied. With headline prices largely range-bound over the past couple of weeks, the more significant market moves have been in the structure of the oil futures curve. Brent’s second-month contract is the most expensive versus a month later in more than a year. That formation — known as backwardation — …

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• 2 February

  BP sells gas stake to Thai firm for $2.6b

  

  Bloomberg BP Plc will sell a stake in an Omani gas block to Thailand’s national energy firm for $2.6 billion, part of a push to divest billions of dollars of assets and focus more on renewable energy. PTT Exploration and Production Public Co Ltd has agreed to pay the sum for 20% of Block 61, according to statements from both …

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• 2 February

  NextEnergy aims to raise $412mn in London IPO

  

  Bloomberg NextEnergy Renewables Ltd plans to raise 300 million pounds ($412 million) in an initial public offering in London, capitalising on growing demand for sustainable investments. The company will invest in renewable power assets and other infrastructure that enables the transition away from fossil fuels, the latest example of asset managers trying to match investors increasing concerns about environmental, social …

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• 2 February

  China solar unit defaults on $500m amid 700% rally

  

  Bloomberg A unit of GCL-Poly Energy Holdings Ltd defaulted on a $500 million bond after ending an exchange offer with existing bondholders. GCL New Energy Holdings Ltd announced the default in a Monday exchange filing. The firm, which operates solar power plants, is majority owned by GCL-Poly, one of the world’s leading makers of solar-grade polysilicon, and whose shares have …

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