For days, Standard Chartered executives had been negociating with multiple law-enforcement officials in New York in order to settle claims that it laundered $250 million for Iran. The final move came on Tuesday, when the british bank decided to open its wallet. The $340 million deal is huge, only beaten by the one reached by the Justice Department and the Manhattan district attorney over money laundering charges with ING bank…
Several weeks ago we dedicated our summer series’ interview to talk about gamification as a productivity and staff engagement booster. But there are other techniques to make office life more interesting or compelling. Decent health plans, employee tuition reimbursement, work life balance and a good year end bonus are some of the top-tens for employees. For others, a young, modern philosophy is a must. That’s one of the reasons Google…
Interested in the world’s economy? There’s somebody you should meet. He doesn’t have an outstanding experience in the private sector but is determined to drastically cut U.S. government spending, boost market flexibility and avoid the “clouds” that are coming from Europe. If Republicans make it to the White House in november, Congressman Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney’s pick for vice president, will have a bigger say than the president. If not,…
If you take a map of the US, you’ll see that almost two thirds are under severe drought warning this summer. Thirty-three states are colored red, longing for rain. Some farmers in Missouri haven’t seen clouds in the sky for more than three months. Ranchers fear that soon they might have to sell their cattle. Crop producers are desperate since many do not have insurance. Yet the situation is not…
After months focused on the eurodrama, markets are starting to care more about the so-called fiscal cliff, a popular shorthand term used to describe the situation that Washington will face at the end of this year. Bush tax cuts are set to expire unless Republicans and Democrats agree on how to extend them and who would have to pay. This combined with $110 billion in defense and domestic spending cuts…
It’s definitely not the best time for British banks. The last one under the spotlight is Standard and Chartered, until now regarded as a darling of the financial sector. The emerging markets-focused lender which managed to escape the effects of Europe’s debt crisis may now lose its operating licence in New York: US regulators alleged it hid $250 billion in transactions with Iran over nearly a decade. According to the…
The Corner continues with its summer series of interviews about the future of Europe seen by international experts. Today, New York University Economics Professor Lawrence White gives his take. He has been with New York University Leonard N. Stern School of Business for more than 30 years. His primary research areas of interest include financial regulation, antitrust, network industries, international banking and applied microeconomics. He is coauthor of Restoring Financial…
After the Draghi’s drag, deciding not to take any immediate action to stop the euro bleeding, markets are digesting a very awaited yet not so bright U.S. job report. It was the best data in five months -July was the best hiring month since February- but still not sufficient to reassure. America added 163,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in July, the Labor Department said (compared to a revised 64,000 jobs in…
Ben Bernanke is not taking the wallet out of his pocket, at least not yet. The Fed will first assess July and August US unemployment reports and also “financial developments”, as it said in a statement at the conclusion of a two-day meeting in Washington. Meaning what? Meaning financial stability in Europe, which is one of US main concerns. We’ll have to wait until September, but there are some hints…
NEW YORK | Their outlook remains negative, but there is some brightness in the horizon, the agency reckons. Standard and Poors will not cut Spain’s rating because it believes the country has done its homework, showing a strong commitment to economic and fiscal adjustment. It will continue to receive support from its European partners and the ECB and therefore its debt will remain below 80 percent of GDP beyond 2015….