Spain’s biggest bank released its 2Q2015 results on Thursday, showing a 24% rise in net attributable profit to EUR 3.426 billion in the first half from a year earlier. All of Santander’s ten core markets posted an increase in profits, with the three largest, Spain, the United Kingdom and Brazil, registering particularly significant rises.
The Corner | July 27, 2015 | Spain’s bailed-out lender Bankia saw its first-half profit rose 11.5 percent from a year ago, as it reported on Monday. Net profit rose 10.3 per cent to €311m, versus a consensus of analysts’ expectations of €277.8m. Charges against bad debts fell and offset weaker revenue from lending.
MADRID | July 15, 2015 | By Fernando G. Urbaneja | El Corte Inglés, which just sold a 10 percent stake for 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) to a Qatari investor, is a rara avis both in Spain and overseas.
MADRID | July 8, 2015 | Fernando G. Urbaneja | Spanish bank Santander appointed a separate board of directors in Spain, independent from the Group board, which reports to shareholders and regulators. A new federal model that gives the eurozone’s largest lender by market capitalisation a structure in each one of the markets where it operates, in some cases under a local brand.
LONDON | June 22, 2015 | UBS | Family-owned midcaps enjoy higher margins and ROE than their peers.
By Ray Kwong | Things just shifted into high-gear in China’s taxi app war. Just days after a leaked memo showed Uber is raising US$1 billion to put its China business into overdrive, the Wall Street Journal reported that Didi Kuaidi—China’s largest taxi app company—is out to raise US$1.5 billion.
MADRID | June 15, 2015 | By Fernando González Urbaneja| Telefonica’s chairman confirmed the firm’s dividend strategy for the next two years at its recent AGM, subject only to the sale of its UK subsidiary O2.
UBS | June 2, 2015 | Although hotel companies need to be vigilant to the digital threat, they are coping well if EBIT margins are anything to go by. In our view, Google remains the biggest potential disruptive force in the online space.
LONDON | May 20, 2015 | BNP PARIBAS | HSBC is going to hold an Investor update on 9 June. We believe the bank is likely to announce the start of a review on whether or not to change its UK domicile. Here are some thoughts on this important matter (by our Bank analyst and ourselves).
MADRID | May 19, 2015 | By Fernando G. Urbaneja | Telefonica’s first quarter results show a company which has reorganised over the last year, consolidating positions in its core markets of Europe and Latin America, where three benchmark countries Spain, Brazil and Germany account for two thirds of group income. It has a somewhat uneven presence in another 8 American countries, ranging from Mexico (4% of the business, without being market leader) to Argentina (9% of the business and market leadership).