TOPNWS – The News Desk

Britain’s Virgin Money full-year profit misses market view

23Nov

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Money

Britain’s Virgin Money full-year profit misses market view

People walk past a Virgin Money store in central London, Britain, July 27, 2021. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 23 (Reuters) - Virgin Money UK (VMUK.L) on Thursday reported full-year profit below market estimates, pulled down by pressure on lending margins and stubborn inflation that squeezed British banks' returns.The British banking industry faces a tough economic outlook, higher risks of loan defaults amid a cost-of-living crisis, and margin pressure from fierce competition for savings and mortgage products.Virgin Money said its underlying profit before tax slumped 24% to 593 million pounds ($738.94 million) for the 12-month period, compared with a forecast of 625 million pounds by analysts in a company-compiled consensus.For the financial year 2024, Vir...

Cryptoverse: Bitcoin miners make money ahead of ‘halving’

14Nov

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Money

Cryptoverse: Bitcoin miners make money ahead of ‘halving’

A bitcoin is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 14 (Reuters) - Bitcoin miners are making hay while the sun shines.The business has been yanked out of the doldrums by the cryptocurrency's recent rally - and now mining companies are racing to lock in profits before bitcoin's "halving", when rewards for producing the tokens are cut in half.The next halving is expected in April 2024, a process designed to slow the release of bitcoin, whose supply is capped at 21 million - of which 19 million have already been mined."You're seeing a lot of urgency to plug rigs in ahead of the halving," said Gregory Lewis, analyst at brokerage BTIG that covers the 13 biggest U.S.-listed bit...

Exclusive: China’s clashing priorities behind rare money market distress

7Nov

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Money

Exclusive: China’s clashing priorities behind rare money market distress

SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE, Nov 6 (Reuters) - China's attempts to keep the yuan from falling contributed to last week's chaos in money markets, sources involved say, pointing to the pressure behind the scenes as Beijing tries to guide its economy and markets through a major slowdown.Routine month-end demand for cash in China's banking system snowballed into a scramble on Oct. 31 that pushed short-term funding rates as high as 50% in some cases, an incident that authorities are now investigating.Six participants in the market say a confluence of factors drove fear and confusion across trading rooms in Shanghai and Beijing by late afternoon on that day.Eventually, the People's Bank of China (PBOC), its affiliated China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS) and bond clearing houses stepped in, direc...

Israel launches diaspora bond push to raise money amidst war with Hamas

10Oct

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Money

Israel launches diaspora bond push to raise money amidst war with Hamas

Flame and smoke rise over Lebanon as seen from Israel's border with Lebanon, in northern Israel, October 10, 2023. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/ File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Israel launched a diaspora bond campaign on Tuesday to raise money amidst a war with Hamas, according to posts on social media sites linked with Israel Bonds."Israel Bonds has launched an international campaign to raise funds for the Jewish state that is at war," posts on LinkedIn, Instagram and X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. "Invest in Israel bonds to provide the nation with financial resources at its darkest hour."According to its website, Israel Bonds - the country's borrowing vehicle for diaspora bonds - had $5.4 billion worth of outstanding bonds as of December 31, rep...

Switzerland drafts tighter rules to combat money laundering

30Aug

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Money

Switzerland drafts tighter rules to combat money laundering

ZURICH, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Switzerland on Wednesday said it had drafted new rules to tighten perceived cracks in its money laundering regulations, holding lawyers and consultants accountable for reporting risks and stepping up oversight of legal entities, such as trusts.The new rules, drafted by the Swiss government, will be presented to parliament in 2024 following consultation.Switzerland, whose banks make it the world's biggest manager of offshore wealth, has long sought to fight its old image as a place for criminals to stash ill-gotten gains. It routinely exchanges bank account information with over 100 countries.But it has faced international pressure to shed more light onto the shadowy world of corporate ownership, where many companies and entities like trusts cloak the identity of...

Plus500 returns money to shareholders, eyes expansion despite profit drop

14Aug

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Money

Plus500 returns money to shareholders, eyes expansion despite profit drop

Shareholder returns of $120 mlnHY core profit down 43% Y-O-YShares up as much as 6%Aug 14 (Reuters) - Online trading platform Plus500 (PLUSP.L) announced on Monday it would return $120 million to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks and said it was looking at further international expansion through acquisitions.The London-listed company posted a 43% slump in core profit in the first half as market volatility declined. However, earnings were up 17% sequentially from the second half of last year.Shares in the company rose by as much as 6%.Trading platforms are dealing with a slowdown in client activity, as market volatility eased from highs witnessed during Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year and the pandemic."We are very much positive about the future for the second half .....

Dutch lender De Volksbank faces fine over money laundering safeguards

11Aug

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Money

Dutch lender De Volksbank faces fine over money laundering safeguards

AMSTERDAM, Aug 11 (Reuters) - De Volksbank's systems to prevent money laundering have been deemed insufficient by the Dutch central bank (DNB) and it will likely face a fine, the Dutch state-owned bank said on Friday.The bank, which incorporates several smaller Dutch banks such as SNS and ASN, disclosed the findings along with its first-half results."We regret that we were not able to fulfil our gate watcher role with respect to client integrity and that we are at this moment in violation of certain legal obligations with respect to money laundering" laws, Chairman Martijn Gribnau said in a statement.The bank said it was working to make changes required by the DNB before April 1.In its earnings report, the bank said first-half net profit nearly tripled to 248 million euros ($273 million) ...

YOUR MONEY How to get high rates to work for you

17Jul

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Money

YOUR MONEY How to get high rates to work for you

July 17 (Reuters) - There is no doubt that higher interest rates are hard on a many people – especially if you are taking out a loan on a home or a car, or are struggling to catch up with credit-card debt.But for some, steep interest rates are not actually bad news.That is because they can finally put their savings to work. In fact, 38% of people say they have benefited from higher interest rates during the past year, according to a new survey from Allianz Life Insurance.“That’s the dichotomy: Higher interest rates are both crushing some people and benefiting others at the same time,” says Kelly LaVigne, vice president of Consumer Insights for Allianz Life.“If you are a saver, suddenly you are seeing higher rates on anything from Certificates of Deposit to annuities for the first time in ...

Australia court approves $300m money laundering fine for Blackstone’s Crown Resorts

11Jul

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Money

Australia court approves $300m money laundering fine for Blackstone’s Crown Resorts

SYDNEY, July 11 (Reuters) - An Australian court signed off on a A$450 million ($300 million) fine for Blackstone-owned (BX.N) casino operator Crown Resorts for breaking anti-money laundering laws, ending the darkest chapter in the company's history.The company, dominated by billionaire founder James Packer before he agreed to sell last year, agreed to the payment in May after allegations over wide-ranging governance problems sparked inquiries in all the states in which it operated, plus an investigation by the financial crime watchdog. read more But the fine needed the sign-off of the federal court, which approved the penalty, Australia's third-largest corporate fine, on Tuesday."The penal orders reflect the serious and unacceptable nature of the contraventions", judge Michael Lee said i...