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☆ It's important to learn lessons from Credit Suisse crisis, Switzerland's finance minister says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailIt's important to learn lessons from Credit Suisse crisis, Switzerland's finance minister saysSwiss Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter says the country should learn lessons from Credit Suisse's failure and devise new legislation in an effort to prevent it happening again.

Persons: Karin Keller, Sutter Organizations: Credit Suisse, Swiss

☆ 'Lose-lose situation': New Swiss bank laws could derail UBS' challenge to Wall Street giants
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-11 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Sergio Ermotti, CEO of Swiss banking giant UBS, during the group's annual shareholders meeting in Zurich on May 2, 2013. Fabrice Coffrini | Afp | Getty ImagesSwitzerland's tough new banking regulations create a "lose-lose situation" for UBS and may limit its potential to challenge Wall Street giants, according to Beat Wittmann, partner at Zurich-based Porta Advisors. The government-backed takeover was the biggest merger of two systemically important banks since the Global Financial Crisis. At $1.7 trillion, the UBS balance sheet is now double the country's annual GDP, prompting enhanced scrutiny of the protections surrounding the Swiss banking sector and the broader economy in the wake of the Credit Suisse collapse. The Wednesday report floated giving additional powers to the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority, applying capital surcharges and fortifying the financial position of subsidiaries — but stopped short of recommending a "blanket increase" in capital requirements.

Persons: Sergio Ermotti, Fabrice Coffrini, Beat Wittmann, Wittmann, Wittman, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley — Organizations: UBS, Afp, Getty, Wall, Porta Advisors, Swiss, Credit Suisse, Suisse, Swiss Financial Market, Authority, JPMorgan, Citigroup Locations: Zurich, Switzerland

☆ UBS to face tougher rules in Swiss response to Credit Suisse rescue
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Switzerland's government said on Wednesday that UBS and three other systemically relevant banks must face tougher capital requirements to shield the country's wider economy, a year after the rescue of Credit Suisse. In 209 pages of recommendations on how to police banks deemed "too big to fail" (TBTF), the Swiss government pitched 22 measures for direct implementation. It stopped short of saying how far stricter capital requirements should go. The increase in requirements for UBS will be "substantial, especially if UBS were to retain its current size and structure, or even grow," it noted in an explanatory document. The Swiss government-backed takeover by UBS of Credit Suisse last year was the biggest merger of banks of systemic importance since the 2007-9 financial crisis.

Persons: Switzerland's Organizations: UBS, Credit Suisse, Swiss Locations: Manhattan , New York City, Switzerland, Swiss

☆ Jim Cramer shares his thoughts on 3M, AT&T, Devon Energy, Deckers Outdoor, On Holding and J.B. Hunt
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

"A lot of people like the actual new 3M," Jim Cramer said, while referring to the company's years of litigation fights. "This is CrowdStrike and Palo Alto. Buy some Palo Alto on this. The CNBC Investing Club owns shares of Palo Alto Networks. The Club owns Coterra.

Persons: Jim Cramer's, Jim Cramer, Cramer, I'm, they've, J.B, Robinson Organizations: CNBC, Club, Palo Alto, CNBC Investing Club, Palo Alto Networks, Devon Energy, Wells, The, Skechers, Barclays, Hunt Transport Services, C.H, Werner Enterprises Locations: Palo, Alto, Devon, Skechers USA, Norfolk Southern

LONDON (AP) — A British financial trader, who has been described as the ringleader in the manipulation of a key interest rate before and after the global financial crisis, lost his appeal Wednesday to have his conviction quashed. At a three-day hearing in London earlier this month, the men’s lawyers argued that their convictions were “unsafe” and should be quashed. An appeal to the Supreme Court has to be made within 14 days. The scandal emerged in 2012 when some banks were accused of submitting fake numbers on purpose to have the LIBOR set at a rate that better suited them. LIBOR has been phased out in recent years, partly because it was seen by many as worsening the 2008 financial crisis.

Persons: —, Tom Hayes, Hayes, Carlo Palombo, Palombo, dishonestly, “, LIBOR Organizations: Citigroup, Switzerland's UBS, London Inter, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, of Justice, Supreme, U.S Locations: British, U.S, London, France, Germany

☆ Switzerland becomes first major economy to cut interest rates in surprise move
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-21 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Swiss national flag hangs from the Federal Palace, Switzerland's parliament building, in Bern, Switzerland, on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2018. The Swiss National Bank cut its inflation forecast and showed no inclination of moving off its crisis-era settings, citing the francs strength and mounting global risks. Economists polled by Reuters had expected the Swiss central bank to hold rates at 1.75%. According to the new forecast, inflation is also likely to remain in this range over the next few years," the bank said. Swiss inflation continued to fall in February, hitting 1.2%.

Persons: Stefan Wermuth, Thomas Jordan, SNB Organizations: Swiss, Swiss National Bank, Bloomberg, Getty, Reuters, Capital Economics, Bank, Capital Locations: Switzerland's, Bern, Switzerland, Swiss

☆ A look at the true nature of the Chinese cyber threat inside the nation's biggest ports
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

But the Biden administration, lawmakers and ports management continue to differ in their views of the true nature of the threat. Kurt Fredrickson, a Coast Guard spokesman, told CNBC via email that even if the software is not Chinese, all software has vulnerabilities, regardless of origin. "Software is everywhere," Gene Seroka, executive director of the LA port, told CNBC in a recent interview at the TPM conference. They warn the crane software concerns are part of a much larger societal risk. He added that regardless of the origin of the crane software and the origin of a crane's manufacturing, there are ways to mitigate cyber risk.

Persons: Biden, Jay Vann, Robert Murray, it's, Kurt Fredrickson, Murray, Carlos Gimenez, Melanie Stambaugh, Greg Ehrie, Doug Vogt, Vogt, Mario Cordero, Noel Hacegaba, Cordero, Gene Seroka, Lucian Niemeyer, Trump, Niemeyer Organizations: CNBC, ABB, Germany's Siemens, Counterterrorism, Law, Intelligence, Homeland Security, U.S . Coast Guard Cyber Command, Biden Administration, People's, Capitol, National Association of Waterfront Employers, Coast Guard, Transportation, Maritime Security, of South Carolina, Northwest Seaport Alliance, USCG, American Association of Port Authorities, New Jersey Port Authority, Siemens, New, Port, Biden, North Carolina Ports, ZPMC, NC, United States Coast Guard, Samsung, U.S . Department of Homeland Security, DHS, U.S . Coast Guard, Security, Defense for Energy, National Security, Management, Maritime Transportation, Joint Force, MTS, Readiness Locations: China, Swiss, People's Republic of China, U.S, of South, China . Port of Long Beach, Tacoma, Seattle, York, New Jersey, New York, Port of New Orleans, of Long Beach, Port of Long, Port of Los Angeles, Port, Oakland, Georgia, Finland, Japan, Taiwan, Europe, Shanghai

☆ Five Cross-Country Skiers Found Dead in Switzerland, AFP Reports
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( March | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) - Five cross-country skiers were found dead in Switzerland and a search is still on for a sixth skier, AFP reported on Monday, citing police. Police in Switzerland's Valais canton on Sunday were searching for six people who went missing during a ski tour that departed from the Alpine town of Zermatt. The skiers, five of them members of the same family, went missing around Tete Blanche mountain on Saturday on the Zermatt-Arolla path, near the Matterhorn mountain that straddles the border between Switzerland and Italy, police had said earlier. The skiers were between the ages of 21 and 58, according to police. Five belonged to one family from the Valais canton, while a sixth person is from the canton of Fribourg.

Persons: Gursimran Kaur, Himani Sarkar, Jamie Freed Organizations: Reuters, AFP, Police, Sunday Locations: Switzerland, Switzerland's Valais, Alpine, Zermatt, Valais, Tete Blanche, Italy, Fribourg, Bengaluru

☆ Wall Street takes bets on which major central bank will blink first
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Brendan McDermid | Reuterswatch nowSwiss headline inflation fell from 1.7% in December to 1.3% in January, well below consensus forecasts, while core inflation dropped from 1.5% to 1.2%. Analysts at Capital Economics said the steep decline meant inflation "looks sure to undershoot the SNB's Q1 forecast of 1.8%." "However, with the January inflation downside surprise, the SNB forecast looks too high to us, and the probability of a policy rate cut on 21 March has increased. Bank of Japan to end negative rate era While most major central banks are looking at loosening monetary policy after more than two years of aggressive tightening to combat rampant inflation, the question for the Bank of Japan is the opposite. The country's core inflation rate — which excludes food and energy — fell to 2% year-on-year in January, after a third monthly increase, surprising slightly to the upside and suggesting that a sustainable return to ultra-low inflation may not be in the cards.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Brendan McDermid, Société Générale, Kit Juckes Organizations: Federal Reserve, New York Stock Exchange, Reuters, Capital Economics, UBS, Bank of Japan, Bank of Locations: New York City, U.S, Bank of Japan, French

☆ Google hit with $2.3 billion lawsuit by Axel Springer, other media groups
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Google corporate logo hangs outside the Google Germany offices on August 31, 2021 in Berlin, Germany. Alphabet 's Google was hit with a 2.1-billion-euro ($2.3 billion) lawsuit by 32 media groups including Axel Springer and Schibsted on Wednesday, alleging that they had suffered losses due to the company's practices in digital advertising. "Without Google's abuse of its dominant position, the media companies would have received significantly higher revenues from advertising and paid lower fees for ad tech services. Crucially, these funds could have been reinvested into strengthening the European media landscape," the lawyers said. Others in the group include Austria's Krone, Belgian groups DPG Media and Mediahuis, Denmark's TV2 Danmark A/S, Finland's Sanoma, Poland's Agora, Spain's Prensa Iberica and Switzerland's Ringier.

Persons: Axel Springer, Schibsted, Stek, Big, Austria's, Finland's Organizations: Google, Geradin Partners, Publishers, DPG Media, Denmark's TV2, Spain's Prensa Locations: Berlin, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Europe, Austria's Krone

☆ Asset manager names one under-the-radar market to buy when times are bad, giving 6 stock picks
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Amala Balakrishner | In Amala-Balakrishner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

"People recommend investing in the Swiss market during uncertain periods – like if you are expecting a recession. "Maybe in a bull market, Swiss equities are not going to be a huge outperformer globally — but they can generate positive returns. But in difficult times, Swiss equities, besides the U.S., is one of the markets to buy," Bänziger said. In her view, Swiss stocks benefit from the strong Swiss franc and a political system that fosters innovation in companies. Meanwhile, Bänziger believes Swiss Prime Site and PSP Swiss Property make good investments among small- and mid-caps, given the opportunities in the Swiss real estate sector.

Persons: Carla Bänziger, Bänziger, Stocks Organizations: U.S . Federal, that's, CNBC Pro, Swiss, State Secretariat, Economic Affairs, Swiss Re, SIX Swiss Exchange, Dow Jones International Real, ABB, Nestle, Roche, Novartis Locations: that's Switzerland, Swiss, Zurich, U.S, Switzerland, Germany, China, Europe

GENEVA (AP) — UBS on Tuesday reported a fourth-quarter pretax loss of more than $750 million as the Swiss banking giant continued to integrate its longtime rival Credit Suisse after a government-orchestrated merger. UBS said it expects to complete the merger of Credit Suisse by the end of the second quarter this year, and the merger of the two banks’ Swiss operations by the end of the third quarter. For the year, UBS took in $77 billion in new assets across its wealth-management and personal and corporate banking segments. Woes at Credit Suisse — before the UBS merger — and the two U.S. banks unsettled global financial markets in 2023. UBS said revenues jumped 35% to nearly $10.9 billion in the fourth quarter.

Persons: —, Sergio Ermotti Organizations: GENEVA, — UBS, Credit Suisse, SIX Group, UBS, U.S . Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, Valley Bank, Signature Bank, Credit Suisse —, — Locations: Swiss, Zurich, United States

☆ 'This stock could double': Fund manager loads up on shares of two banks amid the volatility
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

There are opportunities in the banking sector despite a rise in volatility and concern over steep losses at some lenders, according to fund manager Cole Smead. The stock makes up 1.36% of the Smead Value Fund . He believes UniCredit's share buybacks while the shares trade below book value will drive book value growth higher than the current 8% return on equity. "When you buy back shares below book, there is a multiplier effect on book value growth," Smead explained. The fund manager expects UniCredit will trade above book value over the next 12-18 months and use its stock to pursue further acquisitions.

Persons: Cole Smead, Switzerland's, Julius Baer, Smead, CNBC's, RoE, UniCredit Organizations: Smead Capital, Western Alliance Bank, KBW, New York Community Bancorp, Investors, Western Alliance Bank's, CNBC Pro Locations: Europe, U.S

☆ Swiss Hospitality School Closes After Measles Outbreak
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland's famed hospitality management school, Ecole Hotelier de Lausanne (EHL), closed its campus in Lausanne on Saturday after cases of measles were discovered among students. "We have been compelled to close the Lausanne campus from Feb. 3 to Feb. 18 inclusive," the school said in a statement posted to its website. The campus is scheduled to reopen on Feb. 19. The university did not reveal how many students were infected by measles, but said they are currently isolated and recovering under medical care. Founded in 1893, EHL has been ranked the number one hospitality management school for the past five years by QS World University Ranking.

Persons: EHL, Noele Illien, Toby Chopra Organizations: Ecole, de Lausanne, QS World Locations: ZURICH, Lausanne

GENEVA (AP) — Julius Baer says its CEO is resigning and the Swiss bank is quitting the private debt business as well as setting aside more than a half-billion Swiss francs (dollars) reportedly over its exposure to bankrupt Austrian asset manager Signa. Zurich-based Julius Baer said it was exiting the private debt business and the annual results reflected net credit losses of 606 million Swiss francs (about $702 million) — 586 million francs of which included a loan-loss allowance for unspecified private debt exposure. Photos You Should See View All 45 ImagesShares of Julius Baer were up nearly 6% to 50.02 Swiss francs in midmorning trading Thursday on the SIX Swiss Exchange following the news. Media reports said the bank's troubles were linked to Signa, but Julius Baer didn't specify. The bank announced the exposure to private debt issues in November, comprised of three loans to different entities at a “European conglomerate” active in commercial real estate and luxury retail.

Persons: — Julius Baer, Romeo Lacher, Julius Baer, Philipp Rickenbacher, Nic Dreckmann, Julius Baer didn't Organizations: GENEVA, Signa, SIX Swiss Exchange, Media, Credit Suisse, UBS Locations: Swiss, Austrian, Zurich, Vienna

☆ Trump vs. Biden: Goldman Sachs names the global stocks to play the U.S. elections
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

As the U.S. presidential election comes into the spotlight, Goldman Sachs has assessed the potential impact on global markets by changes in regulation, taxation, and other government policies. However, it sees U.S. subsidiaries of foreign companies potentially gaining if Trump delivers on a cut to corporation taxes. On average, European companies generate 25% of sales in the U.S., but most come from U.S.-based businesses rather than exports from the EU, according to Goldman Sachs. As these companies run substantial U.S. operations and assets, Goldman also sees them as benefiting from potential U.S. corporate tax cuts under Trump. However, they flagged that Biden has mentioned increasing the rate of corporate tax, "which would have an impact on US-exposed companies."

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Donald Trump, Trump, DAX, Sharon Bell, Joe Biden, Goldman, Biden, Michael Bloom Organizations: U.S, Ukraine, Trump, Eurostat, Stocks, Intercontinental Hotels Group, Boeing, Aero, BAE Systems, Kerry Group, Goldman, Republican Locations: United States, U.S, Europe

The highest court in sports sanctioned Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva for doping violations at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. The ruling set the stage for U.S. skaters to receive gold medals after they finished second behind Valieva and her teammates in the team competition. A look at the case, and what happens next:ABOUT THE MEDALSPolitical Cartoons View All 253 ImagesThe International Olympic Committee controls Olympic medals. When Valieva's case first erupted, the IOC decided not to award medals from the event while the skaters were in Beijing. But what the Valieva case exposed was the fact that, even 10 years after Sochi, things are still not back to "normal” in Russia.

Persons: Kamila Valieva, Valieva, There's, they've, ”, Evan Bates, Madison Chock, — “, —, Thomas Bach, It's, would've, Dave Skretta, Graham Dunbar, ___ Organizations: Russia's, Sports, Olympic, IOC, Russian, Russian Olympic Committee, Doping Agency, AP Sports Locations: Russian, Beijing, Russia, Japan, Canada, Montreal, U.S, Ukraine, RUSSIA, ROC, Sochi, Kansas City, Geneva

☆ Holcim eyes $30 billion valuation with North American business listing, picks new CEO
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Switzerland's Holcim will spin off 100% of its North American operations in a New York flotation which could value the business at $30 billion, the building materials giant said on Sunday, as it also named a new chief executive. The spin-off could value the new company at around $30 billion, Jenisch told reporters, with Holcim retaining no stake. Holcim North America was trading at only 7 times operating profit, far less than the 10 to 15 times multiple of peers. Holcim is the biggest cement maker in North America, where it employs 16,000 people across 850 sites. The remaining Holcim business will have sales of around 17 billion Swiss francs ($19.69 billion), and employ 48,000 people.

Persons: Switzerland's, Miljan Gutovic, Jan Jenisch, Lafarge, Jenisch, Zuercher, Martin Huesler, Carlisle, James Hardy Organizations: Holcim, New York Stock Exchange, Eagle Materials Locations: New York, Holcim, Swiss, U.S, Europe, Latin America, Africa, Asia, America, North America, Carlisle, The U.S

The Swiss government on Wednesday selected Stefan Walter, a 59-year-old German national who was director-general of the European Central Bank for the last decade, to head the Swiss financial authority known as FINMA. Swiss authorities feared the collapse of such a major lending institution could further roil global financial markets following the failure of two U.S. banks last year. The troubles at Credit Suisse threatened to unhinge Switzerland's position as a leading financial market, and the takeover left the country with only one internationally important bank: UBS. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesA parliamentary panel created after the government-orchestrated merger has been looking into the origins of the deal. Walter, who has a master's degree in international banking from Columbia University in New York, will start the job on April 1, the Swiss government said.

Persons: Stefan Walter, Walter, Urban Angehrn, Angehrn, Mark Branson, Marlene Amstad, ” Amstad, SRF, FINMA Organizations: GENEVA, UBS, Credit Suisse, Swiss, European Central Bank, Federal Council, Columbia University Locations: Swiss, U.S, British, New York

Five players from Canada's 2018 world junior team have taken a leave of absence from their current clubs in recent days amid a report that five members of that team have been asked to surrender to police to face sexual assault charges. The NHL Players' Association declined to comment. In the meantime, members of the organization, including Flyers players, will not be commenting any further. Hockey Canada has made wholesale changes after a scathing independent report and lost major sponsors in the nearly two years since this and other scandals emerged. Nike last year permanently ended its partnership with the organization after earlier pausing it, along with other sponsors, given the heavy criticism of Hockey Canada leadership.

Persons: Michael McLeod, Cal Foote, Carter Hart, Dillon Dube, Alex Formenton, Formenton, McLeod, Foote, Sandasha Bough, Daniel Briere, “, Bill Daly, Daly, ” Daly, Hart's, Briere, ” Briere, “ We’re, ”, Lindy Ruff, Dube, Dillon, ” Formenton, Scott Smith, Dan Gelston, John Wawrow, ___ Organizations: NHL, New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers, Calgary Flames, Flyers, Swiss, HC Ambri, Devils, NHL Players, Association, Hockey Canada, Globe &, London Police, The Associated Press, Associated Press, London police, Flames, Ottawa Senators, Switzerland's National, Hockey, Nike, AP, AP Hockey Locations: Europe, Swiss, Canada, London , Ontario, Toronto, Detroit, Colorado, Newark , New Jersey, Hockey Canada, Voorhees , New Jersey, Buffalo , New York

Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesZelenskyy is following that up with his first trip to Davos as president after speaking by video in previous years. The corporate chiefs will hear “what kind of immediate assistance is needed” and lay out how private and public sectors can help Ukraine rebuild one day, forum organizers say. The session will draw NATO leader Jens Stoltenberg, German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck and U.S. envoy for Ukraine's economic recovery, Penny Pritzker, among others. While the geopolitical situation has oozed gloom, businesses appear more hopeful — in part from prospects that artificial intelligence can help boost productivity. Leading Western stock indexes shot up in 2023, and falling inflation raised hopes of a decline in interest rates.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy, Jordan, Premier Li Qiang, Ursula von der Leyen, Jake Sullivan, Donald Trump —, Putin —, White, Viola Amherd, Jens Stoltenberg, Robert Habeck, Penny Pritzker, Gitanas Nauseda, José Manuel Albares Bueno, Satya Nadella — Organizations: European Union, Russia, Hamas, Premier, United States, Ukraine, —, Bruins, Spanish, Microsoft Locations: DAVOS, Switzerland, Swiss, Davos, United States, China, Qatar, Zelenskyy, Russia, Bern, Ukraine, ”, East, Europe

☆ I earned a Guinness World Record for visiting all 193 countries alone. Here are my picks for 11 most beautiful countries in the world.
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Cassandra De Pecol | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

I cleared the record for "fastest time to visit all sovereign countries" and "fastest time to visit all sovereign countries (female)." These are my picks for the 11 most beautiful countries I've been to. South AfricaCape Town, South Africa where De Pecol ran her Iron man. UCGOver the last 10 years, I've been lucky enough to travel to South Africa for various reasons: a race, a convention, and my 196-country expedition. The very first time I visited Africa, the Cape of Good Hope,(located along the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa), was the first bit of awe I'd experienced.

Persons: Cassandra De Pecol, —, Guinness, I'm, I'd, Switzerland De Pecol, that's, De Pecol, benedek, I've, Dominica De, United States De Pecol, Matthew Micah Wright, it's, Pecol, Carl Court, It's, Costa Rica De Pecol, Peru De Pecol, Jorge Fernández, Jordan De Pecol, Jordan, Good Hope Organizations: Guinness, Records, Service, World Records, Rockies, Costa Rica De, Puerto, New Zealand, UNESCO, South Africa Cape Locations: Canada, Taiwan, Kosovo, Palestine, Mongolia, Pecol, Russian, Switzerland, AscentXmedia Switzerland, Banff, Toronto, Quebec, Vancouver, Alberta, Dominica, Dominica De Pecol, Bahamas, St, Lucia, United States, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, Vermont, Colorado, Arizona , California, Utah, Maldives, Costa Rica, Puerto Limon, Papagayo, Guanacaste, Peru, Machu Picchu, CAROLINA PAUCAR Peru, Picchu, New, New Zealand, Auckland, Queenstown, Jordan, Petra, Wadi Rum, South Africa, South Africa Cape Town , South Africa, Cape Town, Africa, Good

A view of the sign of Signa Holding on their headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 6, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsVIENNA/FRANKFURT, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Property and retail giant Signa declared insolvency on Wednesday after last-ditch attempts to secure fresh funding failed, the biggest casualty so far of Europe's property crash. Signa blamed its problems on external factors affecting its property business and pressure on high-street shopping. Fuelled by low interest rates, billions were funneled into property, which was viewed as stable and safe. Weakness in commercial real estate in the United States as offices remain empty after the pandemic and the struggles of major property developers in China have focused global attention on the sector.

Persons: Leonhard Foeger, Rene Benko, Signa, Switzerland's Julius Baer, Hannes Moesenbacher, Matthias Inverardi, Rachel More, Madeline Chambers, Catherine Evans Organizations: Signa, REUTERS, Rights, Chrysler, Austria's Raiffeisen Bank, Thomson Locations: Vienna, Austria, FRANKFURT, Germany, Switzerland, Hamburg, Bavaria, Hesse, Europe's, United States, China

☆ IMF, World Bank and BIS in first 'tokenisation' collaboration
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Cecilia Skingsley attends a session on central bank digital currencies at the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington, U.S., October 14, 2022. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Three of the world's cornerstone institutions - the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Bank for International Settlements - are to work together for the first time to "tokenise" some of the financial instruments that underpin their global work, a BIS official said on Tuesday. The trio will also work with Switzerland's central bank which has been pioneering tokenisation, the process of turning conventional assets into uniquely coded "tokens" that can be used in faster new systems. Their collaboration will initially focus on simple but still paper-based processes such as when richer countries donate into some of the World Bank's funds to support poorer parts of the world. She also touched on the new breed of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), repeating calls for some global rules and technology standards so they can work across the world and with existing payment systems.

Persons: Cecilia Skingsley, Elizabeth Frantz, Skingsley, Marc Jones, Matthew Lewis Organizations: International Monetary Fund, World Bank, REUTERS, Bank for International, BIS, Atlantic Council, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Washington, London

☆ Global bank ranking removes Unicredit and moves up UBS, China banks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Unicredit Bank logo is seen in this illustration taken March 12, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsZURICH, Nov 27 (Reuters) - The Financial Stability Board (FSB) on Monday removed Italy's UniCredit (CRDI.MI) from the list of global systemically important banks and moved three banks, including Switzerland's UBS (UBSG.S), up a bucket. UniCredit, which was the only lender in Italy among those deemed as being of global systemic importance by the FSB, had no comment. UBS moved up a bucket after earlier this year taking over Credit Suisse in the first merger of two systemically important banks. Agricultural Bank of China and China Construction Bank also moved up from bucket 1 to bucket 2.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Italy's, Noele Illien, Giulio Piovaccari, Louise Heavens, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, UBS, UniCredit, Credit Suisse, China's Bank of Communications, Agricultural Bank of, China Construction Bank, Thomson Locations: Italy, Agricultural Bank of China

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