It took an accountant to nail Al Capone, as they say. But Donald Trump is not a 1920s Chicago mafia boss. He is a former and possibly future US president whose chances may even be helped by being indicted on relatively minor charges. The prospect that Manhattan’s district attorney could briefly handcuff Trump — possibly
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This is a big week for Chinese-owned short video app TikTok. Chief executive Shou Zi Chew will testify before the US Congress on Thursday. The list of US lawmakers who back a ban of the popular app for national security reasons is growing. A ban would set a worrying precedent for other Chinese apps. TikTok
Good morning. Rishi Sunak faces the opposition of the Democratic Unionist party and a rebellion of the party’s most Euro-hostile MPs and his most implacable critics today. Meanwhile, Boris Johnson is set to be grilled by MPs over lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street and whether he misled parliament. It’s a day of high drama but
Former UK prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss are planning to vote against a key part of Rishi Sunak’s new deal for Northern Ireland on Wednesday, saying it left the UK unable to fully “take advantage” of Brexit. The Windsor framework, unveiled by Sunak and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen last month,
UK inflation unexpectedly accelerated in February, adding to pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates again at its meeting on Thursday. The annual rate of consumer price inflation rose to 10.4 per cent in February, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday. That was up from 10.1 per cent in January
Inflation has started to show signs of easing from the multi-decade highs reached in many countries following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The latest figures for most of the world’s largest economies still make for worrying reading, with price pressures remaining high as the war in Ukraine continues to keep energy and food prices elevated.
Two days after UBS agreed to spend $3.25bn to rescue its rival Credit Suisse, executives have started trying to move past the risks and sell investors on the benefits of the shotgun marriage. Chief executive Ralph Hamers told the Financial Times that the deal was “not simply about bringing two companies together” but about “how
Hours after Swiss authorities pushed Credit Suisse into merging with its local rival UBS, CS leaders emailed staff. Don’t worry, previously scheduled bonuses and raises will go ahead, chair Axel Lehmann and chief executive Ulrich Körner wrote. This comes on top of news that Silicon Valley Bank CEO Greg Becker sold nearly $30mn in shares
When Stefan Kirsten took over as chair of the stricken German real estate company Adler Group in February 2022 in the midst of an accounting scandal, he did not mince words. “The elephant in the room is named Wirecard,” the former chief financial officer of German blue chip Vonovia quipped. It is not just shareholders
Green Day, the cult 90s band, was named after its members’ enjoyment of pot. A green day in California was apparently a day spent lazing around smoking dope. The UK government is planning its own Green Day. This involves less marijuana (presumably) and more details on the UK’s plans to get to net zero. But
Taiwan’s military is prepared for any Chinese military threats during President Tsai Ing-wen’s upcoming overseas travel, vice defence minister Po Horng-huei said Wednesday. Tsai is due to start a 10-day trip on March 29 to diplomatic allies Guatemala and Belize, as well as to the US. Washington on Tuesday called on China not to use
Ministers have delayed plans to raise the state pension age to 68 amid falling life expectancy in the UK and warnings from Tory MPs that the move could provoke a backlash from middle-aged voters. The state pension age, currently 66, is due to increase to 68 after 2044. The government wanted to bring this forward
UBS is set to enter talks with Michael Klein to unwind a deal that would have seen the Wall Street dealmaker take control of much of Credit Suisse’s investment bank, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter. The negotiations, coming days after UBS was forced to buy its Swiss rival for $3.25bn, underline
Businesses have been encouraged to pay more into their employees’ pension pots in a move to meet a shortfall in retirement savings. The Living Wage Foundation, a charity that campaigns for fair pay, launched a new “living pension employer” standard on Tuesday in a move to increase employer pension contributions from 3 per cent of
UK chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said that the Bank of England should remain focused on taming “dangerously high” inflation, despite the strain placed on the global banking sector by rising interest rates. Data to be published on Wednesday is expected to show UK inflation at close to 10 per cent, and Hunt on Tuesday said
The Swiss government has banned Credit Suisse from paying deferred bonuses awarded before 2022 in a move that has sparked more upset from staff at the failed bank. The federal finance ministry said on Tuesday it had imposed “remuneration-related measures” on Credit Suisse as a result of the use of taxpayer funds to facilitate its
Wealth management is a product as emblematic of Switzerland as Toblerone. The chocolate is losing its emblem of the Matterhorn mountain as a result of offshoring. Swiss authorities do not want the branding of wealth management to weaken too. That is one reason they have pushed struggling Credit Suisse into a shotgun wedding with larger
As Credit Suisse entered weekend crisis talks that would end in its forced takeover, a group of its bankers embarked on a different sort of survival challenge: an outdoor adventure trip that they were filming for Bear Grylls. The executives spent Friday night on a camping retreat in Sai Kung, a picturesque town in Hong
Janet Yellen will signal further US government backing for deposits at smaller American banks if needed, a shift that seeks to protect parts of the country’s banking system struggling in the recent financial turmoil. Amid mounting evidence that panicked depositors are pulling savings out of regional banks, the US Treasury secretary will say guarantees offered
First Republic Bank shares rebounded on Tuesday after US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen was expected to signal that a government backstop for smaller banks was at the ready if required. First Republic shares surged more 30 per cent in opening trade on Tuesday, paring some of the New York-based bank’s recent losses. First Republic is
Boris Johnson didn’t start the fire. It was Theresa May, his predecessor as UK prime minister, who embarked on a harder Brexit than a close referendum result seemed to warrant. It was May who gave some bellicose advisers the run of Downing Street. It was May who equivocated when High Court judges were under tabloid