Author Archives: Darren Marchal

Spain to face tough budget cuts

Spain’s newly elected Prime Minister Mariano Rayoy on Friday is expected to push ahead with one of the nation’s most hard-hitting budgets in recent times. The news comes as almost a million protestors took to the streets late on Thursday after a general strike paralysed heavy industry and disrupted transport in Madrid and Barcelona. But…

UK in talks to sell a third of RBS to Abu Dhabi

High profile Abu Dhabi investors have been in talks concerning a £10bn investment into Royal Bank of Scotland it was alleged on Wednesday. Shares in the UK bank rose sharply by 4.6 percent in early trade following the news that Abu Dhabi’s ruling family including Sheikh Mansour and other Abu Dhabi and Middle Eastern investors…

Coutts pays £8.75m over money laundering compliance

Coutts, the 320-year old private bank famous for handling the finances of the Queen, has been fined £8.75m late on Monday by the FSA for money laundering violations in its dealings with high risk customers. The RBS-owned bank, which specialises in private banking and wealth management, was found to suffer “serious and systematic” failings, which…

CaixaBank edging closer to €1.1bn Civica merger

Spanish lender CaixaBank, the Barcelona-listed arm of La Caixa, and smaller competitor Banca Civica SA have both suspended trading on Monday, said stock market regulator CNMV. The move is in anticipation of a deal announcement that could see CaixaBank take over Banca Civica in an all-share deal that will value the bank at €1.1bn or…

China raises fuel prices again

China has raised fuel prices for the second time this year as it tries to get to grips with the rising cost of crude oil. Gasoline and diesel are to be subject to 6.4 point and 7 point cost increases respectively. On Monday, China’s primary economic planning institution, the National Development & Reform Commission, announced…

Game “valueless”, say directors

The end of Game appears to be in sight as the beleaguered video game retailer’s shares were suspended from trading on the LSE, with company directors admitting the company “had no equity value left”. The first quarter of the year has been an increasingly rough ride for GAME; the group recorded £18m in losses in…

Osborne’s budget to help businesses “navigate” tax system

Chancellor George Osborne delivering his third budget speech on Wednesday said that his budget was “fiscally neutral” with “a modest reduction in both taxation and spending.” Osborne believes that Britain is in need of a “simple and transparent” tax system which “businesses can easily navigate.” The key points outlined by the chancellor in his budget…