Financial Services

“Ex-Japan” title may take a final bow with Goldman

21 Nov 2023

The retirement of Japan President Masanori Mochida gives the US firm the option to follow its rivals and have his successor report into the Asia CEO. After a long lull, Japan’s markets are hot. But shape-shifting foreign banks may opt to bring the country into the regional fold.

Julius Baer hit undermines private-banking premium

20 Nov 2023

The pure-play Swiss wealth manager fell 12% after a profit warning, prompted partly by sharp losses against its credit portfolio. Investors didn’t sign up for that kind of risk. The private bank’s top-tier valuation may have to shrink.

Uncle Sam cleverly goes long on short sellers

15 Nov 2023

The SEC is among the US regulators paying cash, including $279 mln in one case, not just to corporate insiders with stories to share but also investors betting against companies using public information crunched in new ways. It makes for a helpful kind of outsourcing.

Payments-app war drags banks into discomfort zone

14 Nov 2023

The US lenders behind Venmo rival Zelle, including JPMorgan and Bank of America, are now compensating victims of some online scams. They’d rather not, and technically shouldn’t have to. In the cutthroat fintech market, however, customers can be right even when they’re wrong.

Europe’s shrinking stash heralds economic trouble

14 Nov 2023

Euro zone households and companies have hoarded money since 2008 and now hold financial assets worth 63 trln euros. That cushioned the blow of higher interest rates and helped stave off a recession. But as mortgages and debts come due, growth may take a hit in 2024.

Alphabet and Robinhood split at rate fork in road

13 Nov 2023

The web search giant sold its stake in the online trading company as their shares head opposite ways. Google’s parent can thrive in a steady economy while Robinhood depends more on faster growth and high-yielding accounts. Elevated borrowing costs favor cash-generating tech.

Capital Calls: UK M&A guidelines

13 Nov 2023

Concise views on global finance: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is now shaking up his own government’s takeover rules.

UBS faces a long wait for M&A share-price boost

7 Nov 2023

Boss Sergio Ermotti is cutting costs and shedding unwanted Credit Suisse assets. He’s even won $22 bln of new money from wealthy clients. The question is when investors will reward him with a richer valuation. Lingering legal and integration risks suggest it might take time.

For global banks, India could soon be worth it

7 Nov 2023

CEOs have descended on Hong Kong for a summit, but investment bankers based in the city are spending time elsewhere in Asia as revenue from China shrinks. In India, IPOs are on the rise and fees are improving. Buyout firms’ behaviour suggests those trends will continue.

Canary Wharf may yet avoid once-a-decade upheaval

6 Nov 2023

The main landlord of London’s key office district has tended to have a new owner every 10 years. The 300 mln pounds of equity injected by incumbents Brookfield and Qatar suggests they may buck the trend. That gives Canary Wharf scope to address its issues in a stable manner.

South Korea’s short-selling ban is one step back

6 Nov 2023

The decision will please retail investors in the $1.8 trln bourse and curb volatility. Yet it looks excessive, even if some banks have misbehaved. The sudden prohibition will scare off emerging market fund investors, and hurts the country’s push for developed-market status.

Capital Calls: Paramount’s stricter streaming

3 Nov 2023

Concise views on global finance: The media stalwart’s shares popped 10% as boss Bob Bakish predicted that losses from its costly streaming push have topped out. But the company still faces a cutthroat market full of better-resourced rivals.

SBF’s guilty verdict will help crypto break free

3 Nov 2023

Sam Bankman-Fried’s crimes worsened a rout that wiped trillions of dollars in value from digital assets. The FTX founder’s conviction suggests that, even in crypto, bad actors will be held to account. That could help rebuild trust in the idea of a trustless financial system.

Morgan Stanley’s new CEO inherits rich pickings

2 Nov 2023

Ted Pick has the money and backing of predecessor James Gorman to make acquisitions that will help the $120 bln Wall Street firm service more of the global elite. While many potential targets look cheap, he can take his time. The most enticing prospects aren’t for sale yet.

Piyush Gupta: Asia’s most disrupted digital banker

2 Nov 2023

The CEO of Singapore’s DBS is often feted as the region’s top financier and a candidate to lead rivals. Yet following repeated tech fails, the regulator has banned the bank from activities including M&A. It puts dividends at risk and will attract the eye of watchdogs overseas.

HSBC’s profit resilience may face sterner tests

30 Oct 2023

Europe’s largest bank doubled third-quarter earnings and is buying back $3 bln of stock, despite a hit from Chinese real estate. Yet the benefit of higher rates is wearing off while costs are stubbornly rising. CEO Noel Quinn’s targets leave room for bigger setbacks.

UK banking pain is a warning for European lenders

27 Oct 2023

NatWest fell 10% after slashing its 2023 revenue target on Friday. Brits are looking for better savings rates, meaning banks have to pay up or lose customers. Continental peers, like UniCredit and CaixaBank, may be at risk of suffering the same plight as their British rivals.

Wall Street’s glum rainmakers deserve more love

26 Oct 2023

Income from dealmaking is moribund; trading revenue is lumpy. No wonder investors in firms like Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs promote the relative appeal of less temperamental businesses like wealth management and credit cards. Before long, though, what’s down may be up again.

StanChart hopes crash into harsh market realities

26 Oct 2023

Shares in the lender run by Bill Winters tanked by up to 17% after surprise hits to its China bank and real estate holdings. These may be one-offs. But the reaction is a reminder that StanChart’s current mediocre goals, after years of subpar results, offer little room for error.

Europe’s investment-bank push is far from a shove

25 Oct 2023

Deutsche Bank has bought a $500 mln UK boutique, BNP is bulking up in markets and Santander has hired 50 Credit Suisse bankers. Yet no one is trying to go back to 2010, when the region had 48% of the debt-trading business. That’s good for US rivals, and the Europeans’ investors.