Law

Holding: Courts may toss investors a crypto-curve

16 Mar 2018

To hear U.S. regulators tell it, initial offerings of many crypto-currencies are actually securities, and subject to strict rules. That’s far from clear, though, judging from cases moving through the legal system. With the jury still out, Congress needs to step in.

Curse of Libor belatedly strikes at SocGen

15 Mar 2018

Deputy CEO Didier Valet is leaving to preserve the French bank’s “general interests”. His role as CFO when SocGen staff submitted inaccurate interbank rates jarred with the bank’s efforts to minimise a U.S. fine. As peers have learned, not knowing is not an adequate defence.

U.S. bank mergers creep one step closer

6 Mar 2018

The Senate looks set to raise the $50 bln level at which a bank comes in for extra regulation. Received wisdom is that doing so will set off a wave of deals for small and mid-size lenders. But amid falling taxes and rising rates, comfortable CEOs may have other ideas.

Trump’s immigration aims undermine economic goals

5 Mar 2018

Court rulings are preventing the deportation of people who entered the U.S. illegally as minors even as protections were due to expire. Yet many remain in legal limbo, and the White House wants to reduce new arrivals. Faster growth, which depends on migrants, will be a casualty.

Holding: Shareholders may snag win from M&A defeat

1 Mar 2018

Delaware courts are cracking down on settlements and appraisal claims for higher payouts in mergers like HP’s $2.7 bln Aruba union. Many are rattled, but it’s too soon to panic. The rulings could cut abuse and uncertainty in the legal process, leading to more and better deals.

RBS is a step away from ending its lost decade

23 Feb 2018

The state-owned UK lender made its first after-tax profit in 10 years. A 4 pct rise in revenue and falling costs moves boss Ross McEwan closer to his return on tangible equity target. Settling U.S. charges over mortgage securities is the last hurdle to restarting dividends.

Holding: Privacy computes for Supreme Court 3.0

22 Feb 2018

High-tech snooping is back at the U.S. tribunal next week with Microsoft’s fight to shield users’ email from Uncle Sam. As in smartphone and GPS-tracking cases, the justices will probably focus on personal rights. The nine of them are remarkably attuned to technology’s risks.

Whistleblowers lose a shield, but so do employers

22 Feb 2018

Those who suspect U.S. securities breaches must tell regulators or lose some protection from vengeful employers, the Supreme Court says. Major misconduct should still get reported. But small stuff might fall through the cracks – depriving companies of a chance to tackle it early.

Uber’s Waymo deal recasts existential question

9 Feb 2018

The ride-hailing service is paying Alphabet’s self-driving unit $245 mln in equity, ending a legal fight over trade secrets. Uber says it didn’t use its rival’s know-how. But if driverless cars are its only road to profitability, it needs to be a technology leader, not a laggard.

Congress holds its nose over U.S. fiscal restraint

8 Feb 2018

The legislature passed a deal early on Friday to raise spending by several hundred billion dollars, just two months after a $1.5 trln tax cut. The strain on government coffers during a roaring economy will leave politicians with far less ammo when the next downturn arrives.

Holding: Mickey Mouse is due trip out of copyright

30 Jan 2018

The valuable rodent will follow other creations into the public domain if Congress allows 95 years of legal protection to expire after 2018. Disney would squeak, but artists, internet users and, yes, Google should cheer. Another extension would leave lawmakers looking like rats.

Boeing needs Embraer deal to fly after tariff crash

26 Jan 2018

A U.S. trade agency surprisingly rejected calls by the aerospace giant and the Trump administration to slap duties on Bombardier’s C Series jet. It shifts the regional-airplane dogfight back to the marketplace, upping the pressure on Boeing to seal a tricky merger with Embraer.

Weed giants share a deserved peace pipe

24 Jan 2018

Canada’s Aurora and rival CanniMed have agreed a friendly merger after months of acrimony. CanniMed’s shareholders only get a small stake in the $6.2 bln combination, but a big uplift in value. The world’s biggest listed weedmaker is now well positioned for regulatory changes.

U.S. shutdown is expensive in more ways than one

22 Jan 2018

Lawmakers agreed Monday to reopen the federal government after a brief closure. Spending halts have only a modest impact on the economy and financial markets, but they cost taxpayers and risk deepening partisan divides. It’s a pricey tool that perpetuates Washington dysfunction.

Amex is a rare real victim of U.S. tax cuts

18 Jan 2018

The $86 bln charge-card group took a big hit from December’s tax revamp. Unlike at other financial firms, its capital ratios fell below acceptable levels. Suspending buybacks to rebuild the cushion makes sense, but it will delay the benefits of the new low-tax regime.

Wall Street dethrones its wealth managers

18 Jan 2018

Citi, Morgan Stanley and UBS all pulled out of a ceasefire that reduces scope for lawsuits when brokers got poached. BofA says it will stay. The rules were already being interpreted liberally. Still, scrapping them sends a grim message to wealth-management staff about who’s boss.

Review: “The Post” gets more relevant by the hour

12 Jan 2018

Steven Spielberg's cinematic retelling of the publication of the Pentagon Papers feels rushed at times, and the nostalgia for a bygone newspaper business is maudlin. But such flaws are easy to forgive as current events emphasize the necessity of a free – and profitable – press.

Walmart pay hike is less than largesse

11 Jan 2018

The $300 bln U.S. supermarket chain is raising hourly wages by $300 mln. That’s just a sliver of what it could save through tax cuts, but that may not be the biggest driver anyway. In fact, with super-low unemployment, it’s a wonder Walmart can get away with so little.

Ant’s MoneyGram fail becomes America First symbol

2 Jan 2018

Jack Ma’s financial offshoot has scrapped its $1.2 bln purchase of the U.S. cash-transfer company. The Alibaba boss made nice with Donald Trump early on, but his pledge to spark 1 mln American jobs wasn’t enough to get the deal past a new, and bipartisan, prickliness with China.

Our 2018 predictions on Reuters TV

31 Dec 2017

From the CEOs who should run for U.S. president, to the banks that ought to be sizing up mergers, our writers give their take on the coming year in a series of Reuters video reports.