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☆ Robert Andrew Parker, 96, Dies; Prolific Magazine and Book Illustrator
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-12 | by ( Richard Sandomir | More About Richard Sandomir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

“There was a casualness in his attitude toward his work,” said Joe Ciardiello, an illustrator who was a friend of Mr. Parker’s. “So many artists can get so fussy about the correct kind of paper or the proper pen or paints. But Bob would use whatever he had — people would give him paint, he’d use cheap stuff, expensive stuff. The original plan was for Mr. Parker’s and Mr. Douglas’s hands to alternate onscreen, where they would appear to be creating van Gogh’s paintings. But they worked on only one, “Wheatfield With Crows,” before Mr. Parker’s job became copying about 100 of van Gogh’s drawings and paintings to use in the film.

Persons: ”, Joe Ciardiello, Mr, Parker’s, Bob, ” Robert Andrew Parker, William, Harriett, Cowdin, Parker, Kirk Douglas, Vincent van Gogh, van Organizations: U.S . Public Health Service, Army Air Corps, Art Institute of Chicago, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York School, Skowhegan, of Painting, MGM Locations: Norfolk, Va, Michigan, Fort Stanton, N.M, New York City, Paris, France

☆ Britain yet to make the case for a digital pound, lawmakers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

People and businesses could use a digital pound to make payments, with the BoE suggesting a limit of up to 20,000 pounds for digital wallets provided by banks, far higher than the 3,000 euros discussed by the European Central Bank for a digital euro. The committee's "The digital pound: still a solution in search of a problem?" The prospect of a digital pound, now in the design phase, has raised concerns that it would allow the authorities to spy on what people spend on, and that it could spell the end of cash. "We recommend that any primary legislation used to introduce a digital pound does not allow the Government or Bank of England to use the data from a digital pound for any purposes beyond those already permitted for law enforcement," the report said. The BoE has said interest should not be payable on digital pound deposits, but the committee said this position should be reviewed.

Persons: Susannah Ireland, BoE, Harriett Baldwin, Huw Jones, Alison Williams Organizations: of, Bank of England, REUTERS, Treasury, European Central Bank, Government, Thomson Locations: of England, London, Britain

☆ UK lawmakers launch inquiry into sexism in finance
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, July 14 (Reuters) - British lawmakers have launched a fresh inquiry into sexism in the country's finance industry, parliament's influential Treasury committee said in a statement on Friday. The inquiry will assess issues including progress made in removing gender pay gaps, how best to support diversity and combating sexual harassment and misogyny, the committee said. The move comes amid renewed scrutiny of sexual misconduct in finance, after hedge fund founder Crispin Odey was ousted from his firm in June after allegations of sexual misconduct jointly reported by the Financial Times and Tortoise Media. The average gender pay gap across 20 of the biggest finance employers was 30.1% in favour of men in 2022, a Reuters analysis in April showed, compared to the UK average of 8.3%. This is a subject of marked importance to our Committee and we look forward to beginning work on this important topic," said Harriett Baldwin, chair of the Treasury committee.

Persons: Crispin Odey, Odey, Harriett Baldwin, Iain Withers, Josie Kao Organizations: Financial Times, Tortoise Media, Treasury, Thomson

☆ UK banks asked by lawmakers if they're 'exploiting' savers with low rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Iain Withers | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, July 3 (Reuters) - British banks faced fresh criticism on Monday for the savings rates they offer to cash-strapped customers, in the latest intervention by parliament's influential Treasury Select Committee. British banks have come under pressure from lawmakers and consumer campaigners for not passing on the extent of higher Bank of England rates to savings customers. Finance minister Jeremy Hunt also said last week banks were too slow to pass on increases in central bank rates to savers and that the problem needed to be resolved. Top executives from the banks were grilled by the Treasury committee on savings rates during a session in February. "Savings rates have increased and we always encourage people to shop around for the product and interest rate that is suited to their needs," the spokesperson added.

Persons: Harriett Baldwin, Jeremy Hunt, Baldwin, Iain Withers, Jason Neely, David Holmes Organizations: Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, NatWest, Bank of, Treasury, Finance, Financial, Authority, Thomson

REUTERS/John Sibley/File PhotoLONDON, June 15 (Reuters) - Odey Asset Management is in advanced talks to move funds and staff to other asset managers as it grapples with the fallout of sexual misconduct allegations against its founder Crispin Odey. A spokesperson for the hedge fund declined further comment on Thursday. Hedge funds such as OAM rely on leverage from prime brokerage service providers to make their market bets. Without a prime broker, a hedge fund which needs to borrow stocks cannot function. A spokesperson for OAM also declined to comment on whether the moves signalled that the hedge fund would close.

Persons: Crispin Odey, John Sibley, Odey, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, James Hanbury, Harriett Baldwin, Nell Mackenzie, Sinead Cruise, Dhara Ranasignhe, Alexander Smith Organizations: REUTERS, Odey, Management, Financial Times, Tortoise Media, Reuters, UBS, Authority, Asset Management, FCA, Treasury, Thomson Locations: Westminster, London, Britain

☆ Cryptos have no intrinsic value and trading in them should be regulated like gambling, UK lawmakers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Trading in cryptocurrencies is akin to gambling and should be treated as such, British lawmakers said. Unbacked tokens like bitcoin and ether aren't underpinned by underlying assets and have "no intrinsic value," lawmakers on the U.K. Treasury Select Committee said in a report published Tuesday. The Treasury committee said it was concerned by government proposals to regulate consumer crypto trading as a financial service. This, lawmakers said, would create a "halo" effect that leads people to believe crypto trading is safe and protected, when this is not the case. Blair Halliday, U.K. managing director for top U.S. crypto exchange Kraken, said: "We fundamentally disagree with the Treasury Select Committee's conclusion that cryptoassets have no intrinsic value.

☆ Crypto should be regulated as gambling, UK lawmakers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, May 17 (Reuters) - Bitcoin , ether and other cryptocurrencies should be regulated as gambling given they are potentially used by fraudsters and pose significant risks to consumers, a panel of UK lawmakers said in a report on Wednesday. Britain is planning its first rules for cryptoassets, which currently only comply with anti-money laundering safeguards. Around 10% of UK adults hold or have held cryptoassets, according to official figures. The European Union approved the world's first set of comprehensive rules for crypto markets on Tuesday. The underlying technology used by cryptoassets has the potential to improve efficiency in payments, the report said.

☆ Biden’s Selma visit puts spotlight back on voting rights
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The visit to Selma also is an opportunity for Biden to speak directly to the current generation of civil rights activists. They urged Washington politicians visiting Selma not to sully the memories of the late civil rights activists John Lewis, Hosea Williams and others with empty platitudes. "When voting rights passed after Selma, it didn't just help Black people. We need the president to reframe this: When you block voting rights, you're not just hurting Black people. As a candidate in 2020, Biden promised to pursue sweeping legislation to bolster protection of voting rights.

☆ British lawmakers ramp up pressure on banks over savings rates, exec pay
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Iain Withers | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Treasury Committee noted profit margins at the four biggest British banks - Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L), NatWest (NWG.L), HSBC (HSBA.L) and Barclays (BARC.L) - increased in 2022 earnings published last month, while some also bumped up boardroom pay. The committee has asked the four banks to justify why they offer less than 1% interest on easy access savings accounts, despite the Bank of England benchmark rate rising to 4%. Banks reported robust profits for 2022 in earnings last month, but warned margins could already have peaked as competition steps up. Analysts have questioned whether political pressure could have been a factor in banks outlining cautious guidance on their future earnings potential. Reporting by Iain Withers; editing by Sinead Cruise, Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

FCA officials said the sector will begin adapting ahead of the rules, as it did with similar rules in the European Union. They rejected concern among lawmakers the new regime would create "bubbles" as money flocked to the fewer funds that qualify as sustainable. Lawmakers on the committee examining the FCA's proposals put Cummings on the defensive over his criticism that too many funds will be excluded. Kate Levick, associate director of sustainable finance at think tank E3G, told the hearing the FCA's plan "would remove the significant amount of greenwashing currently in the market". ($1 = 0.8290 pounds)Reporting by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and Huw Jones; Editing by Mark Potter and Emelia Sithole-MatariseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UK plans to reimburse scam victims 'fundamentally flawed,' lawmakers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Iain Withers | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Proposals to reimburse hundreds of millions of pounds to scam victims in Britain are "fundamentally flawed" and are taking too long to come into force, lawmakers said in a report published on Monday. So-called "authorised push payment" scams have become Britain's largest type of payment fraud and cost customers 583 million pounds ($715 million) in 2021. Lawmakers on Britain's powerful Treasury Select Committee criticised the plans and said mandatory reimbursements should begin this year at the latest, and not as late as 2024. "Putting an industry body in charge of reimbursing scam victims is like asking a fox to guard the henhouse," said Harriett Baldwin, chair of the Treasury committee. The PSR said it would consider all feedback before publishing its final position in May this year, adding it regulated payment system operators including Pay.UK.

☆ NatWest CEO to face UK lawmakers on savings rates after U-turn
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Feb 2 (Reuters) - NatWest (NWG.L) CEO Alison Rose will face a grilling by British lawmakers next Tuesday over whether lenders are passing on enough of central bank interest rate rises to consumers, after initially saying she was too busy to attend. "Following further discussions with the Treasury Committee on the vital issues at hand, Alison Rose will be attending next week's Committee hearing," a spokesperson for NatWest said. Lloyds boss Charlie Nunn and executives from Barclays and HSBC are also set to attend the hearing held by the powerful Treasury Select Committee next week. NatWest had initially said its retail bank boss David Lindberg was an appropriate boss to represent the bank at the hearing. Reporting by Iain Withers; Editing by Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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