Banking Weekly

The banking team return from their summer break to examine the regulatory problems at JPMorgan, as US authorities demand the bank pay more than $6bn to settle allegations of mis-selling and a probe is launched into its hiring practices in Asia. James Shotter joins from Switzerland to discuss what is going on at Zurich Insurance, as the company launches a probe into the death of its former finance chief, and the team look at the Co-operative Bank, who last week announced a massive pre-tax loss, ratcheting up pressure on its bondholders to back a proposed debt restructuring plan

The big week ahead for UK banks, US banks eye the exit from the metal warehousing business and why Brussels is demanding that Monte dei Paschi di Siena be subjected to tougher penalties before it approves the €3.9bn state bailout of Italy’s third-biggest bank by assets.

This week the banking team discuss Santander UK’s interest in breaking into the rapidly growing peer-to-peer market, Deutsche Bank’s plans to shrink its vast balance sheet in order to comply with stricter rules for financial soundness, and the Abu Dhabi sheikh who prevented Barclays from seeking state aid at the height of the financial crisis, selling his stake in the bank

This week sees Goldman Sachs’ former employee Fabrice Tourre in court over an alleged derivatives mis-selling scandal and the publication of the bank’s second quarter results. Will either of these events spoil the bank’s attempts to burnish its image? Also discussed are the recent cash crunch in China and its aftermath, and Nationwide’s plan to meet the new 3 per cent leverage ratio by 2015.

Mark Carney began his new role at the helm of the Bank of England last week. In this week’s podcast, Patrick Jenkins, banking editor, is joined by Chris Giles, economics editor and Brooke Masters, chief regulation correspondent, to review Mr Carney’s first few days in the job, and what his top priorities will be as governor. Also discussed is the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s latest blow to the credibility of the main measure of bank safety, core tier one capital ratios, and Tobias Buck, Madrid bureau chief, joins to examine why Spanish banks are preparing for Basel III by attempting to get deferred tax assets changed into tax credits

The Kuwait Investment Authority is planning a $5bn investment in infrastructure assets, mostly in the UK, strategically changing the way they invest. Bank equities, particularly in the West, have become less attractive for this sovereign wealth fund, so is this a blow for George Osborne’s quest to reprivatise Lloyds and RBS? Sharlene Goff is joined by Patrick Jenkins, banking editor and Anne-Sylvaine Chassany, private equity correspondent, to discuss this, the Co-operative group’s debt restructuring plans, and Barclays’ latest spat with the regulator.

As UK and Swiss lenders face new demands from central banks to prove their soundness, the banking team look at leverage ratios. They look at bankers’ pay as new research shows that bank chief executives have been paid less generously for the first time in three years. And Rachel Sanderson, Milan correspondent, joins the podcast to analyse Mediobanca’s radical plan to quit the shareholder pact that has kept it at the centre of the Italian corporate power network for more than half a century.

The long-awaited independent review into the UK banking sector was published this morning by a British parliamentary commission. The report sets out a blueprint to restore trust in Britain’s banks - recommending more accountability for bank executives, punitive sanctions for misconduct and strengthening of the link between bonuses and performance. Mark Garnier MP, a key member of the commission, and Bob Penn of Allen & Overy join the FT banking team to gauge reaction in the City.

The banking team discusses the plan to rescue the Co-operative Bank, preview George Osborne’s Mansion House speech, which is likely to include clues about the government’s plans for Lloyds and RBS, and consider the view of a US regulator who described Deutsche Bank’s capitalisation is “horrible”.

The banking team is joined by George Parker, the FT’s political editor, to examine the prospects of the UK government selling part of its stake in Lloyds, what is expected in the final report from the banking commission and the mooted merger of BNP Paribas’ US units

The options for the UK’s Co-operative bank to increase its capital levels, the latest on the row between Switzerland and the US over bank secrecy and the importance of allegations of money laundering at Liberty Reserve

This week the banking team discuss JPMorgan’s annual meeting, where chief executive and chairman Jamie Dimon won a clear victory over shareholder activists looking to strip him of one of his roles. They also look at pay in Europe in light of recent tweaks to EU bonus caps, and Qatar snapping up stakes in key lenders

This week the banking team discuss the replacement of the scandal-plagued libor benchmark rate, which could happen as early as next year. Camilla Hall reports from Dubai to discuss banking in the Middle East and the US criminal probe into whether Barclays made improper payments in Saudi Arabia. Finally, the team discuss the financial wellbeing of the Co-op Bank as Moody’s downgrades its credit rating to “junk”

This week, the banking team discuss recent transatlantic spats over bank regulation, as Michel Barnier, the EU commissioner in charge of financial services warns the US on bank 'protectionism'. Miles Johnson, Madrid correspondent looks at the reasons behind Santander chief executive Alfredo Sáenz's resignation, and the team discuss the UK government's reprivatisation agenda for RBS and Lloyds as Jim O'Neil, the UK Financial Investments chief executive and the man appointed to oversee this element of the financial recovery steps down.

This week the banking team discuss the departure of the last two senior executives from the Bob Diamond era at Barclays, as Rich Ricci, head of investment banking and Tom Kalaris, head of wealth management, announce plans to retire. They also review the recent US bank results, and look at Chancellor George Osborne’s plans to expand the Funding for Lending Scheme