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Barclays’ new tier two write down instrument was supposed to set a template for other UK banks to follow. Its soggy secondary performance has made it an easy target, but a better gauge of real investor interest in UK Cocos will be where it trades in the medium term.
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A global trade repository for all securities lending transactions is part of the Financial Stability Board’s plans to overhaul shadow banking. There would be knock-on benefits for the industry too.
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Conrad Baker has taken a rather topsy turvy approach to the upcoming Yuletide festivities. The former Deutsche Bank MTNs impresario, who is heading to Nomura to join its SSA syndicate, is planning a pretty big treat for himself between Christmas and New Year — starting his new job.
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The bank capital community — management, funding officials and investors — has had a tough time in recent years trying to get its head around a continually evolving set of rules.
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HSBC’s investment banking aspirations are growing while the competition retrenches, writes David Rothnie.
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Intesa Sanpaolo’s decision to remove the call options from several lower tier two securities to optimise their capital treatment under Basel III has stunned the market. But it makes absolute economic sense — and it’s high time everyone accepted that.
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Blog was distressed to hear of more staff cuts in the City this week (not naming any names... UBS). We’re sure there are some psychopaths out there who relish dismissing staff — perhaps inviting them into the dreaded meeting room with a wide-eyed grin and promising them a promotion before letting out an uncontrollable, Patrick Bateman-style cackle and slamming the door in their face — but for normal, compassionate people, it can’t be a particularly enjoyable experience.
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The European Council hopes to charge towards banking union later this week, “sprinting” ahead with plans to make the ECB the single supervisor. But it should not press on blindly: a well-designed banking union is far preferable to one thrown together in haste.
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Morgan Stanley wants to maintain close relations with departing M&A star Simon Robey, but the time is also ripe for the firm to promote its new breed of dealmakers, argues David Rothnie
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A proposal in the Liikanen report that bankers should be paid partly with bail-inable debt is intended to build on existing attempts to align decision-making with long-term performance. At first glance, the idea might appear unfair, but it could help keep management on the right track in times of crisis.