Climate change activists occupy Zurich’s financial district August 2, 2021 Police this morning began clearing a group of Climate Strike activists occupying the heart of Zurich’s financial district. Around 200 activists from the Climate Strike Switzerland group gathered outside the UBS and Credit Suisse headquarters to protest the financing of environmentally damaging fossil fuel projects. According to “Rise Up for Change”, a group bringing together [...]
First-half profits double at HSBC as bank reinstates dividend August 2, 2021 Banking behemoth HSBC appears to have recovered from the ravages of Covid-19, with first-half profits more than doubling on last year. The Asia-focussed bank recorded pre-tax profits of $10.8bn for the first six months of the year, some $6.5bn ahead of last year’s equivalent. The bank said all of its regions were profitable, with HSBC’s [...]
City watchdog launches money laundering probe into Monzo July 30, 2021 The City watchdog is in the early stages of a probe into British digital bank Monzo over possible money laundering activity. Monzo announced the potential probe alongside its annual results today, which showed the challenger bank swung to a £130m loss, up from £114m last year. Read more: City watchdog slashes fundraising threshold to attract [...]
NatWest notches up £2.5bn in ‘resilient’ first half, as lending rises July 30, 2021 NatWest roped in some 2.5bn in operating profit before tax in the past six months, swinging from a loss of £770m in the first half of 2020. The British bank’s net lending rose by £2.2bn to £362.7bn in the six months to 30 June, while UK and RBSI retail and commercial businesses pushed lending to [...]
The FCA is revamping itself to be more “assertive” July 29, 2021 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has proposed changes to streamline its decision-making processes, in a bid to make it more efficient. The financial watchdog said discussions have been held about moving some decision-making responsibility from its Regulatory Decisions Committee (RDC) to its Authorisations, Supervision and Enforcement divisions instead, in an announcement today. The RDC, a committee of [...]
HSBC accused of ‘blatant’ forex fraud by former client July 29, 2021 HSBC currency traders in London have been accused of routinely fronting run client orders for extra profits as part of a “blatant and indefensible” fraud by investment manager ECU lawyers. The closing statement comments by lawyers for ECU, which is suing HSBC for currency trades made over 15 years ago, marked the end of a [...]
Credit Suisse Archegos probe reveals serious management shortfalls July 29, 2021 A lack of accountability and weak internal controls to monitor risk drove Credit Suisse’s $5.5bn loss on investment fund Archegos, according to a damning review published on Thursday. Law firm Paul Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrisson released the findings of an investigation into the lender’s investment in Archegos. It blamed the losses on poor risk [...]
Lloyds banking group lifts forecasts as UK economic outlook brightens July 29, 2021 Lloyds banking group has lifted its forecast for the year after the UK’s economic outlook has brightened in the past six months amid its vaccine rollout. Statutory profit before tax hit £3.9bn in the six months to 30 June, a ‘significant’ increase from the first half of 2020. The banking group has confirmed it bought [...]
Exclusive: Islamic fintech founder Junaid Wahedna on why the UK market is firmly on his radar July 28, 2021 The market for Islamic fintech is growing globally, and in the UK. Last month the Boubyan Bank Group announced that the world’s first Islamic international digital bank will be launched in the UK. The global Islamic fintech market is estimated to reach $128bn by 2025, a 161 per cent increase from 2020’s figure, according to [...]
Coutts secures B Corp ethical status July 28, 2021 Coutts has secured the sought-after B Corp status, the bank announced on Twitter. The certification attests companies uphold certain social and environmental performance standards, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. The private bank and wealth manager has a history spanning over three centuries and is known to be the banker for [...]