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Markets 28th March 2012

Spanish banks’ return on average total assets unchanged from 2010

MADRID | In the sector’s consolidated income statement, the Spanish Banking association AEB reported on Wednesday a net interest income of €50.725 billion, which is an increase by almost 2% of the amount reached in 2010 and maintains profitability levels over average total assets (ATA) at 2.23%, with just a one hundredth less difference. All with an evolution of ATA by 2.7% higher than those managed in 2010. EAB admitted, though, that the…

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Markets 19th March 2012

Goldmangate: too big for just an “I quit” op-ed

NEW YORK | Why has a letter in the New York Times sparked such a PR crisis for Goldman Sachs? In his ‘Why I am leaving Goldman Sachs’ article, Greg Smith, an executive director at the American investment bank, contended that the culture inside Goldman was “toxic” and that the bank routinely took advantage of its clients. This is powerful stuff, but the impact of the letter is way beyond just…

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Markets 16th March 2012

Bank deleverage to open €700bn finance gap in commercial real estate sector

MADRID | Morgan Stanley published a report that analyses the implications of the banking deleveraging process for the commercial real estate sector in Europe. The bottom line is that it will generate a gap in financing estimated in €400 to €700 billion during the coming years and that this is a structural trend. “We believe that the winners may be the venture capitalists. In our view, Blackstone and Partners Group are well positioned to step in that section of business once banks leave. Financing activity in commercial real estate has an…

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World economy 12th March 2012

Make the banks pay for their sins… with taxpayers’ cash?: US latest episode

NEW YORK | These are not the best days for being a banker. Banks lent irresponsibly, they were bailed out with public money, and then started a robo-signing foreclosures campaign. All while tightening the credit to small businesses. Now they are starting to pay their penance –some are taking even more of it than they were supposed to. Bank of America said that it will provide deeper than anticipated principal…

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Spanish economy 23rd February 2012

Much ado about nothing with Spanish evicted families

By Julia Pastor, in Madrid | Perhaps the British households in economic troubles because of the crisis and the unemployment impact are mildly familiar with the words eviction or lieu of payment, but more than 150.000 Spanish families have already been evicted and another 330.000 are in the same process. They are destitute families, with all their members unemployed and no additional income, who cannot face up paying their mortgage. On…

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Markets 17th February 2012

Capital Madrid: “resuming short-sales could increase trade of financials by 16%”

 By Julia Pastor, in Madrid | The Spanish stock market fell Thursday by 2%, specially because of the severe punishment suffered by its listed banks. On Friday, analysts at Link Securities commented that “as good news came from Greece, European financial shares were regaining ground but Spanish banks behaved differently… we see that the only reason that explain this fact is the end of the short- selling veto.” After France and…

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World economy 7th February 2012

$25 billion US mortgage settlement: not quite there yet

NEW YORK | It would be great news for hundreds of thousands of people: billions of dollars (an estimated $25 billion) in aid to homeowners who have lost their homes to foreclosure or who are still at risk. The money would come from big mortgage banks: Bank of America, JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Ally Financial. Why on earth would those banks be willing to pay that amount? They…

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Spanish economy 4th February 2012

Are caps on pay for rescued banks in Spain fair enough?

By Juan Pedro Marín Arrese, in Madrid | It is only fair that banks being nationalised to save them from sheer collapse should follow a much restrictive pay policy on top executives and members of the board. After all, a huge amount of taxpayer money has been spent to fill the gaps derived from irresponsible management. The odd thing is that most culprits have already left the entities with their pockets…

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World economy 2nd February 2012

US banks join foreign governments against Volcker rule

NEW YORK | It has been one of the main topics at Davos, according to The New York Times: A number of foreign officials complaining to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner about the Volcker rule. It hasn’t come from the usual suspects, American banks, but from other governments. European, Japanese and Canadian officials have objected to one aspect of this already polemic new regulation: the fact that it restricts US banks…

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Markets 2nd February 2012

Plans to force mergers in Spanish banks might backfire

[UPDATE] By Juan Pedro Marín Arrese, in Spain | The Spanish government will disclose on Friday its plans for a massive clean-up in mortgage-backed bad loans from banking balance sheets. This move is indeed highly welcome so long this overhaul doesn’t push too far eating all resources at hand. Once a €50 billion adjustment has been announced, markets will only settle for a substantially higher figure. In many cases, meeting such…