Central banks keep hiking rates amid banking turmoil

Central banks keep hiking rates amid banking turmoil

March 23 (Reuters) – The Bank of England on Thursday followed the Federal Reserve and the Swiss National Bank in hiking interest rates, as policymakers ploughed on with their fight against inflation in the face of the instability that rippled through the global banking system this month. Investors had questioned whether the central banks could … Read more

Citigroup CEO declares ‘this is not a credit crisis’ after U.S. bank failures

Citigroup CEO declares 'this is not a credit crisis' after U.S. bank failures

March 22 (Reuters) – Citigroup Inc (C.N) CEO Jane Fraser on Wednesday expressed confidence in U.S. banks after a series of closures rattled investors and fueled turmoil in global financial markets. “The banking system is pretty sound,” and large and regional banks are well-capitalized, Fraser told the Economic Club of Washington D.C. on Wednesday. “This … Read more

Exclusive: Republican U.S. Senator Rick Scott, Democrat Warren unveil Fed oversight bill

Exclusive: Republican U.S. Senator Rick Scott, Democrat Warren unveil Fed oversight bill

WASHINGTON, March 22 (Reuters) – A conservative Republican and a progressive Democrat in the U.S. Senate are introducing legislation on Wednesday to replace the Federal Reserve’s internal watchdog with one appointed by the president, aiming to tighten bank supervision following the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. Republican Rick Scott and Democrat Elizabeth … Read more

SVB Financial Group seeks cooperation with FDIC after $2 bln frozen

SVB Financial Group seeks cooperation with FDIC after $2 bln frozen

March 21 (Reuters) – An attorney for SVB Financial Group (SIVB.O) told a judge on Tuesday it was seeking cooperation from regulators who seized its Silicon Valley Bank unit and removed $2 billion of its cash, which was needed to sustain operations. SVB Financial, which filed for bankruptcy on Friday, had said in court papers … Read more

Bank shares rise after Credit Suisse rescue eases crisis

Bank shares rise after Credit Suisse rescue eases crisis

March 20 (Reuters) – U.S. banking stocks rose on Monday and Europe’s lenders recovered from a sharp early sell-off after UBS Group’s state-backed takeover of Credit Suisse appeared to close off one source of worry for the global banking sector. In a package engineered by Swiss regulators on Sunday, UBS Group AG (UBSG.S) will pay … Read more

UBS mulls takeover of Credit Suisse with possible Swiss government guarantees

UBS mulls takeover of Credit Suisse with possible Swiss government guarantees

FRANKFURT, March 18 (Reuters) – UBS (UBSG.S) is examining a takeover of Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) that could see the Swiss government offer a guarantee against the risks involved, said two people with knowledge of the matter on Saturday. The people said that UBS was coming under pressure from the Swiss authorities to carry out a … Read more

Wall St Week Ahead: Plunging bond yields boost stocks’ allure ahead of Fed meeting

Wall St Week Ahead: Plunging bond yields boost stocks' allure ahead of Fed meeting

NEW YORK, March 17 (Reuters) – Whipsawed U.S. stocks have gained an unexpected ally in recent days – a historic plunge in bond yields. U.S. government bond yields fell steeply this week, with some durations marking their biggest drops in decades, as investors bet the Federal Reserve would likely curb its aggressive rate hike trajectory … Read more

Wall Street ends sharply lower on bank contagion fears

Wall Street ends sharply lower on bank contagion fears

First Republic Bank tumbles on suspending dividend SVB Financial seeks bankruptcy protection FedEx jumps on full-year profit forecast raise Indexes down: Dow 1.19%, S&P 1.10%, Nasdaq 0.74% NEW YORK, March 17 (Reuters) – Wall Street closed lower on Friday, marking the end of a tumultuous week dominated by an unfolding crisis in the banking sector … Read more

ECB watchdog sees no Europe contagion after US, Swiss bank rescues

ECB watchdog sees no Europe contagion after US, Swiss bank rescues

March 17 (Reuters) – European Central Bank supervisors see no contagion for euro zone banks from recent turmoil, a source said on Friday, after U.S. lenders threw First Republic Bank (FRC.N) a $30 billion lifeline and tapped record amounts from the Federal Reserve. Large U.S. banks on Thursday swooped in to rescue the San Francisco-based … Read more

US banking system sound but not all deposits guaranteed, Yellen says

US banking system sound but not all deposits guaranteed, Yellen says

WASHINGTON, March 16 (Reuters) – The U.S. banking system remains sound and Americans can feel confident that their deposits are safe, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday, but she denied that emergency actions after two large bank failures mean that a blanket government guarantee now existed for all deposits. In her first public remarks … Read more