UK power price caps will give banks jitters 6 Sep 2018 Britain’s energy regulator has put a ceiling on default energy bills. While Ofgem’s plan won’t hurt utilities as much as feared, the precedent is important. Domestic banks can only hope politicians fail to spot that their business models similarly rely on consumers’ apathy.
Norway’s anti-plastics push has firm foundations 6 Sep 2018 Oslo’s $1 trillion wealth fund wants its investments to flag what they’re doing on ocean pollution. As a recent spat over oil and gas holdings shows, political meddling means good intentions don’t always translate into action. That should be less of a problem this time around.
Time breathes life into America’s mortgage zombies 5 Sep 2018 It’s 10 years since Washington took over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, injecting $187 bln to render them undead. Reforms have not touched the supposedly temporary fix. A functioning home-loan market, revenue for the Treasury and inertia suggest taxpayers may be stuck with them.
Skilling could have earned stripes more usefully 31 Aug 2018 The former Enron CEO was released from prison into a halfway house. During his time behind bars, corporate malfeasance flourished but prosecutions dropped. Using high-profile arrests as a deterrent doesn’t work if prosecutors don’t catch criminals. Felons could help.
Tencent’s big battle goes from fantasy to reality 31 Aug 2018 The “Honour of Kings” maker lost another $20 bln in market value on a fresh videogames crackdown. This time, Chinese officials say they’re worried about myopic kids. It leaves investors exposed to nearly unpriceable risks and Tencent’s failure to build new businesses fast enough.
Viewsroom: The financial crisis, 10 years on 30 Aug 2018 The crash cost the U.S. economy $30 trln, put 9 mln people out of work and as many families out of their homes. And it exposed how unprepared bankers, lawmakers and watchdogs were. Here we preview our podcast miniseries interviewing some of the movers and shakers of the time.
U.S. creeps into EU’s money-laundering blind spot 30 Aug 2018 A new anti-money laundering directive seeks to plug holes in Europe’s leaky banks. But the rules don’t address the core problem of relying on local supervision. Until the EU can establish an independent AML authority, the U.S. will continue to act as the bloc’s de facto top cop.
Korean chaebol overhaul runs into economic reality 28 Aug 2018 Seoul’s antitrust chief unveiled new rules to rein in powerful family conglomerates. Slowing growth, however, has made the likes of Samsung even more important to the country’s jobs plight. That means governance reform probably will wind up weaker than originally anticipated.
Musk flip-flop makes job harder to do – and keep 25 Aug 2018 Tesla’s CEO has pulled the plug on taking the $55 bln electric-car maker private, capping a record of overpromising and underdelivering. The abysmal handling of the half-baked idea calls Musk’s judgment further into question, just as Tesla needs cool heads to become profitable.
More AWOL China bosses flag unique key-man risks 24 Aug 2018 Casino operator Landing has lost half its market value amid news that its chairman is unreachable. It’s the second such case in three days. Overdependence on top executives continues to plague many Chinese companies, and they’re exposed to hazards uncommon in other markets.
U.S.-China trade talks stumble on biggest block 24 Aug 2018 Mid-level negotiations yielded no breakthroughs as tariffs hit $16 bln of Chinese goods. The United States wants reforms to industrial policy that would fundamentally alter Beijing’s development model, and might even rewire how it runs the economy. It will struggle to deliver.
Fed vice chair deserves to be top global bank cop 23 Aug 2018 Allies of President Donald Trump have slammed the Financial Stability Board, but Randal Quarles is a strong supporter. Putting the U.S. central banker in charge of the body that oversees financial regulation when Mark Carney steps down would help maintain global rules.
Australia’s Huawei ban undercuts “Made in China” 23 Aug 2018 Security and political concerns prompted Canberra to block the telecom titan from backing the country’s 5G network. It’s a setback for Huawei, but also for Beijing. The world-beating national champions it wants to cultivate are increasingly seen as dangerous arms of the state.
Viewsroom: Amazon’s JEDI rebellion 23 Aug 2018 Amazon looks set to win the Pentagon’s $10 bln JEDI cloud contract, but Oracle is fighting back. Plus: Is it time for Airbnb to sell its China business? And should Elon Musk be worried about a Chinese Tesla lookalike listing in New York?
U.S. coal-power plan blows little but hot air 21 Aug 2018 Donald Trump wants to let states set their own emissions rules. It may save some coal plants for a while. But banks prefer not to fund them, other electricity sources are cheaper – or soon will be – and renewable energy provides far more jobs. These trends will win out.
Even a cleaner China is tempted by old playbook 20 Aug 2018 Beijing is cracking down on rating agency Dagong over its cosy relationships, in a rare rebuke. Yet it is also telling banks to step up support for infrastructure in order to prop up growth. Beijing wants to stimulate the economy and to keep tidying: it may struggle to do both.
Trump adds new impetus to old short-termism debate 17 Aug 2018 The U.S. president wants the SEC to examine letting public companies report earnings every six months, rather than quarterly. Plenty of others, like BlackRock’s Larry Fink, had already slammed the practice. Trump’s tweeted directive should prompt some useful independent analysis.
China’s startups can reinvent fewer wheels 17 Aug 2018 Beijing-based Redcore admits its "100-percent" homegrown browser has a Google base. Its programmers are the latest to dress up open-source software as Chinese, seeking state support. A clumsy localisation strategy does little for security, and distracts from real innovation.
Revamped U.S. deal reviews are skid risk for Tesla 16 Aug 2018 Saudi help in a buyout could spur national-security scrutiny under new powers. Tesla’s tech might be deemed critical, while D.C. also worries about China's ambitions. Rules and pilot programs are works in progress, but it's another uncertainty for CEO Elon Musk’s convoluted plans.
Britain’s Disney M&A ruling is a bit Mickey Mouse 16 Aug 2018 The Takeover Panel, generally a sound custodian of UK bid rules, is keeping the Magic Kingdom’s minimum buyout price for Sky at 14 pounds per share. Nudging it higher, in line with Disney’s Fox bid, would have set a better precedent for similar deals in the future.