Barclays does a transatlantic deal at last 18 Aug 2004 But this ain t no transformational deal. The UK bank is paying $300m for a lossmaking US credit card outfit. Still, the acquisition could be the foundation of a new source of growth for Barclays.
Investment banks still hiring despite slowdown 17 Aug 2004 After a pickup in hiring in the first half, most firms expect to end the year with more people than in January. Given the way the markets have dipped in the last quarter, maybe they've jumped the gun.
Analysts squeal to FSA on company bullies 12 Aug 2004 Instead of complaining about regulation, investment banks are now proactively encouraging it. But the UK regulator has rejected calls to legislate against companies pressurising analysts into being nice. That s ironic, but correct.
Citi deserves praise for profitable dealing 11 Aug 2004 The big bank flooded a small trading platform with orders. The disruption was quite profitable. Rivals are furious. But they should be jealous, not angry. Citigroup was not exactly fair, but economies of scale rarely are. The big bank flooded a small bond trading platform with orders. The disruption was quite profitable. Rivals are furious.
German bankers let sleeping dogs lie 11 Aug 2004 The more Chancellor Schroeder calls for bank mergers, the less keen the banks seem on the idea. The reason? It s the economy.
UBS warns of falling revenues 10 Aug 2004 The firm's optimism following a strong first quarter didn't last long. Small wonder trading income nosedived in the second quarter. In May, it expected a full recovery in investor confidence. Now it calls the lower level of client activity normal.
Barclays Capital shames investment banking rivals 5 Aug 2004 After bad results from CSFB and Deutsche, Barcap has delivered a bravura performance. It's making more money than Barclays retail bank. Is it sustainable? If the benefits of recent investment in Barcap have not emerged yet, the answer is probably yes.
M&A activity spikes in July 4 Aug 2004 A handful of big US deals, plus Abbey National, made the month the biggest since booming January. Surely one month does not make a trend. But there are some reasons to think the pace will continue briskly.
CSFB follows Deutsche’s lead with poor figures 4 Aug 2004 In fact, it did worse than its German rival. Fixed income trading slumped and equities were weak. CSFB s new boss Brady Dougan wants to rebuild the franchise and increase revenues. But it's not clear how or how much it will cost.
Prudential pulls sale of Egg 3 Aug 2004 The insurer s CEO Jonathan Bloomer seems to have messed up the sale of a noncore asset. This is just the latest in a series of, er, bloomers, and will test the strength of his Teflon coating.
Lloyds TSB frets about foreign takeover 2 Aug 2004 Why is the UK bank so worried? Abbey National says that no foreign bank, except Santander, is interested in it. Lloyds may actually be more worried about the banks that don t bid for Abbey than those that do.
HBOS mulls counterbid for Abbey 2 Aug 2004 If it were just a question of synergies, HBOS would be home and dry. But the regulator may block its bid. The key question is whether HBOS can compensate Abbey s investors for the regulatory risk they d have to bear.
Deutsche Bank drops the ball in Q2 30 Jul 2004 Equities crashed instead of picking up the slack from fixed income as hoped, ramming home the unhealthy dependence on bond trading. Deutsche says it's still aiming at a 25% return on equity next year, but its chances of hitting this look increasingly remote.
BNL guerrilla operation sparks M&A hopes 29 Jul 2004 The Italian bank s new rebel shareholder pact might push to revive talks with old suitor Monte dei Paschi. The risk, however, is that the two shareholder factions could enter into a stalemate. In this case, the stock would likely fall.
Emilio Botin defends doubled bet on housing 28 Jul 2004 The Abbey bid increases Santander s housing exposure and into a market that s more stretched than buoyant Spain. Botin says there s no housing bubble in either country. If he s wrong, Spanish investors may rue the bid.
HBOS shows it’s not all bad news on bank margins 28 Jul 2004 Everyone has been pessimistic on interest margins in the UK. It's one reason investors may be tempted to accept the Abbey bid. But maybe it's not all doom and gloom. HBOS's margins have held up better than expected.
Abbey agrees unexciting Santander bid 26 Jul 2004 It is no real surprise the Spanish haven t been overgenerous. This isn t really a costcrunching merger. Santander will be banking on investors postM&S not wanting to see another big bid slip away. Oh, and rival bidders not stepping in.
Abbey flowback may be manageable 25 Jul 2004 The UK bank s odd share register means stock may not hurtle back from Britain to Spain after a deal. That s a boon. But it will only help the Spanish if the deal has real industrial merit. Otherwise their stock will fall anyway.
Santander tempts Abbey with mainly-paper bid 23 Jul 2004 The Spanish are calculating that investors don t believe existing management can turn the UK bank round. That may be a reasonable call. But it s still going to be hard for Santander to sell the deal.
JP Morgan raises cost-cut estimates by 36% 21 Jul 2004 Savings from the Bank One deal will not only rise to $3bn from $2.2bn, they will come two years sooner than expected. That's a big bonus. But it's also embarrassing for Jamie Dimon, who is fight accusations and a lawsuit he undersold Bank One. It looks like he may have. But it's also embarrassing for Jamie Dimon, who is fighting accusations, and a lawsuit, he undersold Bank One. It looks like he may have.