Christine Lagarde makes hard ECB job even harder 13 Mar 2020 A blunt remark by the European Central Bank chief drove up Italian bond yields - the last thing she wanted. She could get away with not knowing what pushes traders’ buttons when markets were placid. But that lacuna means she’s facing a crisis saddled with a credibility deficit.
MbS vs. Putin will be an oil drama in several acts 11 Mar 2020 The Saudi crown prince and Russian president’s crude supply pact has blown up into a full-on price war. On the face of it, Moscow’s budget means Vladimir Putin is better able to bear extended low prices. But Mohammed bin Salman also has options to keep the wolf from the door.
Jamie Dimon gives succession plan a scary test run 6 Mar 2020 JPMorgan’s CEO is recovering after emergency heart surgery. Deputies Daniel Pinto and Gordon Smith are in charge for now. Others have been waiting in the wings too. How well they get along and manage the virus crisis will provide investors with a glimpse of the bank’s future.
Malaysian upheaval turns back clock for Goldman 2 Mar 2020 A surprise new prime minister is supported by the party whose ex-leader is on trial over 1MDB. That undercuts a fight against corruption. It also resets talks with the Wall Street bank over its role in the fund scandal, even if this government may reconsider an $8 bln tab.
India-born CEOs take one step back, two forward 21 Feb 2020 The governance mess at Gulf hospital operator NMC has put an Indian executive on the map for the wrong reason. But the country’s huge business diaspora is taking charge of giant firms like IBM. The international influence highlights a dearth of local opportunity.
Coronavirus may come for boards and CEOs 20 Feb 2020 Infectious diseases are inevitable, but the financial havoc they wreak is not. Pandemics and efforts to contain them eat away an estimated 1% of GDP each year. Too many companies have failed to prepare, and shareholders ought not shrug off the Wuhan episode as a black swan.
Election that Bloomberg buys may not be his own 20 Feb 2020 The billionaire fumbled his first debate as a presidential contender. But his political machine matters more than his performance. Bloomberg has 2,100 staffers, provides corporate-style perks and may drop over $500 mln on TV ads. It’s a springboard for future Democratic hopefuls.
Mark Carney’s green push needs disclosure stick 14 Feb 2020 The outgoing Bank of England boss wants firms to say how they’ll cut carbon emissions. Ideally, he would use his new role as U.N. climate finance envoy to make such disclosure mandatory after November’s UK climate summit. But there’s only so much political capital to go round.
Samsung defies corporate governance logic 14 Feb 2020 The South Korean tech titan’s chairman has quit just months after heir Jay Y. Lee left the board. Even with yet another leadership crisis, Samsung stock trades at a record high and its valuation keeps soaring. As questions about growth mount, shareholders may regret the optimism.
Credit Suisse’s staid future is a mixed blessing 13 Feb 2020 Outgoing CEO Tidjane Thiam unveiled decent 2019 results, and said recent Instagram posts had not been his idea. The odd mix echoes a tenure that had highs and lows. New boss Thomas Gottstein may give investors a less bumpy ride, but that may not improve the bank’s valuation.
Jes Staley’s old associate haunts Barclays revival 13 Feb 2020 Regulators are probing the UK bank CEO’s description of his relationship with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. It’s another distraction from efforts to lift the $39 bln lender’s return on tangible equity into double digits. Low interest rates already make that a challenge.
Thiam exit only first on Credit Suisse to-do list 7 Feb 2020 Parting with CEO Tidjane Thiam following a spy scandal may repair damage to the Swiss bank’s credibility with customers and regulators. But Chairman Urs Rohner recruited him and has lost investors’ confidence. He’ll struggle to make a credible case for serving out his term, too.
Chinese panic is more contagious than coronavirus 7 Feb 2020 Shoppers are aggressively hoarding rice, toilet paper and vegetables, and sealing off their gated apartment complexes. That suggests they think things will get a lot worse before they get better. Such anxiety may become self-fulfilling; economic malaise can outlive an epidemic.
HSBC CEO limbo has a thin silver lining 6 Feb 2020 The $150 bln bank may unveil a big strategic overhaul before naming its permanent boss. That’s messy but there’s a crumb of comfort. Interim head Noel Quinn is effectively auditioning for the job and has an incentive to show he can quickly deliver much-needed cost cuts.
Hadas: Who deserves to be a billionaire? 29 Jan 2020 Probably not Isabel dos Santos. The Angolan ex-president’s daughter flourished while the country that produced most of her fortune struggled. But in the modern economy, all billionaires extract far more economic value than they add. Taxes are a better remedy than charity.
Italy’s honeymoon with EU is under threat 22 Jan 2020 Luigi Di Maio looks set to step down as head of the 5-Star Movement, the largest party in the ruling coalition. That will strain the alliance. If a crucial regional election on Sunday produces a victory for eurosceptic Matteo Salvini, it may imperil the fragile pro-EU government.
Lotte scion gets chance to inspire Korea Inc 21 Jan 2020 Shares in South Korea's fifth-largest conglomerate rallied after the death of founder Shin Kyuk-ho. His son, already in charge of the group, has promised aggressive restructuring. With diplomatic, legal and family spats winding down, he has space to hurry up.
Africa’s richest woman is Angola’s trickiest issue 20 Jan 2020 The petrostate’s government is scrutinising the $2 bln business empire of Isabel dos Santos. Reports of nepotism clearly hurt the daughter of Angola’s ex-ruler. But proving graft will be hard, and seizing her stakes in local firms might hit the economy.
The gayest Davos in history still isn’t gay enough 20 Jan 2020 Adding an LGBTQ panel to the annual outing and giving an award to a transgender artist beats the “don’t ask, don’t tell” posture of the past. But with 70 countries still persecuting same-sex relations, and many WEF corporate sponsors supportive of equality, more can be done.
Santander CEO fiasco exposes banking’s fault line 16 Jan 2020 It’s a year since chair Ana Botin reversed her decision to make UBS executive Andrea Orcel the Spanish group’s boss. Misgivings about pay and management style were rooted in the gulf between wholesale and retail lenders. A 112 mln euro lawsuit will lay bare the culture clash.