MADRID | June 11, 2015 | By Francisco López | The appointment of Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos as president of the Eurogroup was a sure bet until the Dutch finance minister and current Eurogroup chief said he will stand for the post again. Possibly affected by this bad news, Mr De Guindos made a very unfortunate intervention about the Spanish banking sector’s restructuring.
LONDON | May 30, 2015 | Cristina Marzea (CFA) | All the buzz these days is about digital banking: will banks lose business to disruptive entrants, or will they fight back and embark on a massive digital revolution which will see the branch concept become obsolete. Not all EMs are the same – this refers to levels of bancarisation, credit penetration, technology and mobile adoption, as well as the competitive banking landscape that shapes where each banking market is in the technology cycle.
MADRID | May 9, 2015 | By Fernando G. Urbaneja | Spanish banks are still the central pillar of the Spanish stock market: seven lenders account for nearly 40 percent of the IBEX-35 index.
MADRID | May 6, 2015 | By Francisco López | Spanish banks first quarter results have been very good in terms of earnings, but a closer look at their recurrent business is not so positive. The seven banks listed on the Ibex 35 index earned € 1,677 million in the first three months of the year, up 32% from a year earlier.
MADRID | April 25, 2015 | By Ofelia Marín-Lozano | The Euro Stoxx 50 banking index traded at 450 points in 2007. It fell to 70 during the crisis and in the last two years has recovered up to 160 points. In parallel, the profit of large listed Spanish banks fell between 2007 and 2012 to levels around a quarter of the previous highs. Since then it has been recovering, although at the end of 2014 it still was at around 50% of 2007 levels.
MADRID | April 24, 2015 | By Fernando G. Urbaneja | Bankia held its general meeting in Valencia (headquarters of one of the integrated in the brand new boxes) this week to approve its 2014 results –the year of the firm’s regeneration– and design its future roadmap. One of its non-explicit goals is to accelerate the partial and progressive privatization of the entity before November general elections in Spain.
MADRID | April 1, 2015 | By Fernando Barciela | The Corner caught up with Luis Iturbe, a board member with Spanish insurance giant, Mapfre. He emphasises the improving health of the Spanish banking sector, but says that the capital increases by lenders, notably Santander, have prevented the Spanish stock market to reach the same revaluations as its peers. He also states that markets in London and New York dished out an unreasonable level of punishment to the euro and Greece.
MADRID | March 30, 2015 | By Nuria Álvarez, at Renta 4 | Strong gains to remain challenging in the year ahead as banking environment undergoes sectoral changes.
BBVA Research | March 30, 2015 | The TLAC’s public consultation period ended on 2nd February. Now is the time for carrying out a comprehensive Quantitative Impact Study (QIS) to define the optimal calibration of the TLAC. The FSB will assess the potential impacts on financial system, financial stability and the real economy.
The Corner | March 26, 2015 | A substantial increase in lending to consumers in 2014 has reinforced the sense that conditions are improving in the area of consumer confidence and banking. In addition, a decline in the rate of bad loans offers further indication of stabilisation in the Spanish credit market.