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The European Central Bank is giving Banca Carige yet more time to boost its capital. If the lender cannot turn itself around, authorities will regret dithering while the private sector walked away. -
2019 is likely to be another year where the independent mandate of central bankers comes under pressure from populist politicians in democracies. It is easy for those in the market to sympathise with the quiet technocrats over the loud-mouthed headbangers, but scrutiny is deserved.
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Financial markets are often seen as cold, calculating machines for making money. That is part of their function. But increasingly, people are talking of markets’ broader social purpose — that they exist to serve humanity and make its existence healthier and more sustainable. Toby Fildes argues that, 10 years on from the crisis, this new ethos will govern the markets’ future.
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Rising hopes that the UK can escape the nightmare of Brexit are misplaced. A second referendum would carry huge risks, and even if the outcome were Remain, it would leave an unstable Britain with a damaged relationship with the rest of the EU.
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The sustainable finance movement, when looking at banks and insurance companies, has so far focused mainly on assets rather than liabilities. But insuring or offering deposits for a particular activity is just as important as lending to or investing in it.
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Judging extension risk is a key part of investing in bank capital. If investors call it wrong, it is hard to say they have been grossly mistreated.
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UBI Banca includes financing for "religious entities" as an eligible category under its new social bonds framework, listing eligible organisations as those “aiming at reducing exclusions and inequalities”. But it would take a miracle for the world’s largest religions — with their central tenets of ‘we’re special and you’re not’ — to meet that requirement, raising the question of who actually qualifies.
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UniCredit paid a hefty price for hitting the market this week, but it will also stand to reap the rewards.
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The European Central Bank is likely to decide soon whether to launch a new targeted long-term refinancing operation (TLTRO III) for banks. The market may already be forcing its hand, but the EU’s fight with Italy means the choice has wide-reaching implications.
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Eurobank’s ambitious scheme to fully merge with its real estate firm Grivalia, hive off €7bn of NPLs, and sell a stake in its servicer was rightly welcomed by the market, with the shares bouncing on Monday morning and other Greek indices rallying. But it’s not something the country’s other banks can count on — the scheme relies on a generous backer, willing to double down on the troubled economy.
