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(Bloomberg) -- Claims for weather-related incidents are set to exceed $100 billion for the third year in a row, as floods, hail and wildfires linked to climate change become more frequent. Munich Re has put the total global insured costs of natural-catastrophe events in the first half of 2023 at $43 billion, while Swiss Re has pegged it at $50 billion, according to a report by Bloomberg Intelligence. [Extracted from the article]

Virgin Money, which pledged earlier this month to resume buybacks after passing the Bank of England's latest stress tests, said its net interest margin remained stable in the three months to June as customers deposits grew 0.4% to £67.3 billion. (Bloomberg) -- Virgin Money UK Plc said it expects a total share buyback of £175 million ($223 million) for its 2023 financial year, as rate increases bolstered the firm's surplus capital. [Extracted from the article]

Terra Firma will now be led by Chief Operating Officer Paul Hatter and Hands' son Richard, who will be managing director responsible for residential investments and new deals. (Bloomberg) -- Guy Hands has stepped down as chairman and chief investment officer of Terra Firma after more than 20 years in the role. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- The largest shareholder of Thames Water cut the value of its stake by almost 30% last year, another sign of the pressure that's built up on the UK utility. Omers Farmoor Singapore Pte, an investment vehicle of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, reduced the value of its holding in Thames parent company Kemble Water to about £700 million ($917 million) at the end of 2022, down roughly £300 million, according to a corporate filing for the Singaporean entity. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- The bosses of the biggest UK banks have been called to a meeting later this week with the Financial Conduct Authority over concerns their firms are being too slow to pass interest rate increases on to savers. On Tuesday, the average two-year fixed-rate home loan was 6.47% while the average easy access savings rate was 2.45%, according to Moneyfacts Group Plc. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- The bosses of the biggest UK banks have been called to a meeting later this week with the Financial Conduct Authority over concerns their firms are being too slow to pass interest rate increases on to savers, according to the Financial Times. The UK is trying to put pressure on lenders to ensure they're passing on changes in interest rates as quickly to savers as they are doing to mortgage holders and other borrowers. [Extracted from the article]

... To get involved in November's election. In the last presidential election just 65 percent of the registered voters took the time to vote. Bad mistake. The no-shows could have […]

The article discusses the impact of the firm Amazon.com Inc. on Seattle, Washington. Topics include the impact of former Microsoft Corp. executive Paul Allen and his firm Vulcan Inc. on real estate development in Seattle, the development of the South Lake Union neighborhood, and the impact of population growth on Seattle housing prices.

(Bloomberg) -- HSBC Holdings Plc is planning to leave its Canary Wharf headquarters and relocate to the City of London, the latest sign of how a shift to flexible work is reshaping demand for offices. HSBC has been looking for alternatives to its Docklands skyscraper as it looks to a more flexible workspace and adapts to the post-pandemic cityscape, according to a memo sent last year by the bank's chief operating officer John Hinshaw. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- LendInvest Plc founder Christian Faes has left London to start a new fintech investment firm in the US, citing years of political problems and a difficult business environment in the UK. Faes said in a statement that Los Angeles-based Faes & Co. will build direct-lending businesses and manage a private credit fund to invest in deals from the firms that it incubates. Fintech Funder Leaving London for Los Angeles, Cites "Tough" UK Market. [Extracted from the article]

What Bloomberg Intelligence Says The mutually agreed termination of Toronto-Dominion Bank's offer for First Horizon will leave TD with C$21 billion in surplus capital over the new hurdle, more than all peers and ample for uncertain times ahead. (Bloomberg) -- Toronto-Dominion Bank and First Horizon Corp. scrapped their $13.4 billion deal after the Canadian lender said it couldn't see a clear path to getting regulatory approval. The two banks said the unspecified regulatory issues clouding the deal weren't related to First Horizon. [Extracted from the article]

Canada's second-biggest bank informed First Horizon that it was unable to secure a "timetable for regulatory approvals to be obtained for reasons unrelated to First Horizon", the statement said. (Bloomberg) -- Toronto-Dominion Bank and First Horizon Corp. have agreed to terminate their previously announced merger amid uncertainty about the possibility of regulatory approvals. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Toronto-Dominion Bank and First Horizon Corp. have agreed to terminate their previously announced merger amid uncertainty about the timetable for some regulatory approvals. Canadian lender TD informed First Horizon that it "does not have a timetable for regulatory approvals to be obtained for reasons unrelated to First Horizon", the statement said. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of First Republic Bank rose in pre-market trading as the US banking industry and regulators ponder possible paths forward for the troubled regional lender. Some of the biggest US banks have already contributed $30 billion in deposits to prop up First Republic, and they have balked at getting more involved and potentially throwing good money after bad, Bloomberg reported. [Extracted from the article]

For Numis, the offer from Deutsche Bank comes after a tough year for City of London firms, with a sharp downturn in capital markets hitting various British brokers hard. (Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG agreed to buy Numis Corp., one of the best-known UK boutiques, in an all-cash deal that could reshape the landscape of investment banking in the City of London. [Extracted from the article]

The lender's advisers are working on a private-sector solution they hope could keep the embattled firm from being shut down by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Financial Times reported Friday, citing people it didn't name. (Bloomberg) -- Shares of First Republic Bank rose in pre-market trading as the US banking industry and regulators hash out possible paths forward for the troubled regional lender. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG agreed to buy Numis Corp., one of the best-known UK boutiques, in an all-cash deal that could reshape the landscape of investment banking in the City of London. For Numis, the offer from Deutsche Bank comes after a tough year for City of London firms, with a sharp downturn in capital markets hitting various British brokers hard. [Extracted from the article]

For Numis, the offer from Deutsche Bank comes after a tough year for City of London firms, with a sharp downturn in capital markets hitting various British brokers hard. Deutsche Bank to Buy UK Boutique Firm Numis for £410 Million (Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG has agreed to buy Numis Corp., one of the best-known UK boutiques, in an all-cash deal that could reshape the landscape of investment banking in the City of London. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG has agreed to buy Numis Corp., in a surprise deal for one of the City of London's best-known boutiques. Deutsche Bank Agrees to Buy UK Boutique Numis for £410 Million The boards of the German lender and UK investment bank have reached an agreement that values Numis at about £410 million ($511 million), according to a statement Friday. [Extracted from the article]

"Personally, I have experienced the joy of being back in the office, of being able to interact more casually with colleagues", the Barclays Plc chief executive officer said in a Bloomberg Television interview Thursday, his first since completing treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma earlier this year. (Bloomberg) -- After three months of cancer treatment, C.S. Venkatakrishnan is relishing his return to the office. [Extracted from the article]

"Until recently, Citi was unaware of Paul Barrett's association with Jeffrey Epstein, which predated his employment at our firm", a spokesperson for Citigroup said in a statement. (Bloomberg) -- A Citigroup Inc. banker has left the lender following a media report that he met with Jeffrey Epstein while working for JPMorgan Chase & Co. Paul Barrett, who was head of the private capital group for North America, has exited the firm, a Citigroup spokesperson said. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc shareholders could use the firm's annual meeting to press directors about their support for former boss Jes Staley, according to a report by proxy firm Institutional Shareholder Services. These ties, cultivated when Staley led the investment bank at JPMorgan Chase & Co., are now at the center of legal proceedings. [Extracted from the article]

Staley stepped down from the British bank in 2021 after UK regulators shared with Barclays the preliminary findings of a probe into what he disclosed about his relationship with deceased pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein. (Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc shareholders could use the firm's annual meeting to press directors about their support for former boss Jes Staley, according to a report by proxy firm Institutional Shareholder Services. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- HSBC Holdings Plc said rising interest rates have put a deal to sell its French retail banking business into question, a potential blow to its plans to streamline its global operations. The lender said if the sale doesn't proceed, there would be "no material impact on guidance or performance of HSBC." HSBC's shares were up 3.17% at 1:56 p.m. in London, in line with other lenders as US bank earnings season began. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- HSBC Holdings Plc said rising interest rates have put a deal to sell its French retail banking business into question, potentially setting back its plans to streamline. "The Purchaser Group has advised us that they consider that they will be unable to obtain regulatory approval without amending the previously agreed transaction terms", HSBC said. Read More: HSBC Sees $3 Billion Hit on French Retail Deal to Cerberus (1) ©2023 Bloomberg L.P. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- A trio of City of London firms has warned of weak investment banking revenues, as moribund capital markets continue to weigh on business in the Square Mile. City of London Firms Warn of "Historic Lows" in Capital Markets Peel Hunt, which is a mid- to small-cap investment bank, said revenue for the year to March 31 would drop about 37% to £82 million ($101 million), "with capital markets activity at historic lows.". [Extracted from the article]

Read More: LSE Announces £750 Million Buyback From Refinitiv Investors Under the lock-up arrangements, Thomson Reuters and Blackstone were able to sell as many as 66.1 million shares in total until Jan. 29, 2024. (Bloomberg) -- Blackstone Inc., Thomson Reuters Corp. and other investors disposed of about £2 billion ($2.4 billion) of stock in London Stock Exchange Group Plc after a lockup period expired. LSE's $27 billion acquisition of data giant Refinitiv in 2021 made those investors its largest shareholders with a stake of about 35% as of March 2, 2022, according to LSEG's 2021 annual report. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Blackstone Inc., Thomson Reuters Corp. and other investors are selling about $2 billion of stock in London Stock Exchange Group Plc as a lockup period expires. Read More: LSE Announces £750 Million Buyback From Refinitiv Investors ©2023 Bloomberg L.P. [Extracted from the article]

The BOE's Prudential Regulation Authority had long opposed wide scale deregulation of Solvency II and even argued that it should be tightened up in some areas. (Bloomberg) -- The governor of the Bank of England has told lawmakers that the UK government's plans to reform insurance capital rules increases the annual risk of a failure in the life insurance sector by around 20%. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- The UK has paid out £640 million ($774 million) to lenders against pandemic loans to small businesses now suspected of being fraudulent, the latest sign that the government failed to put effective measures in place to protect taxpayer money. Fraudulent Covid Loans Cost UK Taxpayers £640 Million In total, the UK has so far paid out £4.1 billion to lenders to cover defaulting loans from the program, just under 9% of the total. [Extracted from the article]

The short seller's allegations of financial manipulation at Adani - denied by the Indian firm - have set off a stock rout across the Adani companies. (Bloomberg) -- Jo Johnson, a former Conservative minister and brother of former prime minister Boris Johnson, has stepped down as director of Elara Capital Plc, a UK firm named in a short seller report about the Adani group. [Extracted from the article]

Morgan Stanley is the latest bank to require individual staff to bear some of the burden of an unprecedented regulatory investigation, after it emerged that unapproved messaging platforms were being widely used to conduct business. (Bloomberg) -- Morgan Stanley fined some of its own bankers more than $1 million each for conducting business on WhatsApp and other messaging platforms, the latest fallout from an industrywide probe that saw US regulators impose the record penalties for monitoring lapses. [Extracted from the article]

Kingman, who is chair of Legal & General Group Plc and whose former roles include positions at the UK Treasury and Rothschild, will join the board as a non-executive director and become chair of the group's ring-fenced bank from June 1, the lender said in a statement Monday. (Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc has appointed John Kingman to replace Crawford Gillies as chair of Barclays UK, one of a number of board changes the lender is making as two of its long-standing directors step down. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s international head says that the bank's recent job cuts have resized its footprint for the current economic environment and it will continue to hire at all levels of the firm. "We've sized the firm to suit what we think the outlook will be", Richard Gnodde said in a Bloomberg Television interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- An increasing number of the UK's financial services firms expect a rise in loan defaults in the next three months, the latest reminder of a gloomy economic outlook. The UK set out in December a slate of reforms to "turbocharge growth" for the country's banks, insurers and asset managers. [Extracted from the article]

Standard Chartered bought aircraft-leasing firm Pembroke Group in 2007 as it looked to broaden its product range. (Bloomberg) -- Standard Chartered Plc is considering selling its aviation finance business as part of its strategy to cut costs and improve shareholder returns. [Extracted from the article]

The article focuses on the partnership between retail company Walmart and lesbian comedian Ellen DeGeneres. It states her daytime talk show "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" produces more advertising revenue than that of shows by celebrities Kelly Ripa and Dr. Phil and talks about the growth of LGBTQ rights and representation. It comments on how in 2007 Walmart backtracked from LGBTQ friendly policies due to a threatened boycott from Christian conservative groups and its change in policy in 2015.

The article discusses Nigerian businessman Aliko Dangote's goal of becoming Africa's biggest industrialist, and it mentions his Dangote Industries Ltd. firm's revenue, as well as his roles in the cement and construction industries. Building projects involving a fertilizer plant an d an oil refinery are addressed, along with Dangote's ascension in the business world. Nigeria's economy and infrastructure investments are assessed.

(Bloomberg) -- UK regulators have fined TSB Bank Plc £48.7 million ($59.2 million) for risk management and governance failures after technical failures in the lender's IT system resulted in customers being unable to access banking services. UK Fines TSB £49 Million For Service Disruption After IT Upgrade "We'd like to apologise again to TSB customers who were impacted by issues following the technology migration in 2018", TSB's Chief Executive Officer Robin Bulloch said in an emailed statement. [Extracted from the article]

While the IFS said few of those dying today are bequeathing pension pots, it calculates that subjecting pensions to inheritance tax would eventually raise as much as £1.9 billion ($2.4 billion) a year. (Bloomberg) -- The UK tax system allows people to use their pension pots to avoid inheritance tax and should be changed to allow the government to collect more tax, a think tank has said. [Extracted from the article]

From the start of 2019 through last November, Barclays arranged roughly $50 billion of financing via loans and bond sales for fossil-fuel companies, more than any UK-based bank other than HSBC Holdings Plc, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Barclays Plans £500 Million Investment in Green Startups by 2027 (Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc plans to invest £500 million ($619 million) in climate-focused startups by 2027, as the lender targets $1 trillion of green financing by the end of the decade. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- The Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority have told lenders to act flexibly if their customers get into difficulties repaying their mortgages, as the UK looks to soften the impact of rising interest rates and a spluttering economy. Lenders also recommitted to enabling mortgage holders to switch to a new fixed rate mortgage, without a new affordability test, as long as consumers are up to date with their payments, according to a separate statement by the Treasury on Wednesday. [Extracted from the article]

Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt met with mortgage lenders Wednesday to discuss the market and support measures. (Bloomberg) -- The Financial Conduct Authority has told lenders to act flexibly if their customers get into difficulties repaying their mortgages, as the regulator looks to soften the impact of rising interest rates and a spluttering economy. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc's chief operating officer is stepping down, setting off an overhaul of its top ranks. Alistair Currie, who currently heads the consumer banking & payments unit, will replace Mark Ashton-Rigby in the COO role on Feb. 1, according to a press release Wednesday. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- HSBC Holdings Plc is cutting as many as 15% of its 2,000 senior operations managers worldwide, according to Reuters. This week, the lender announced the sale of its Canadian unit to Royal Bank of Canada for $10 billion, and Bloomberg has reported HSBC is reviewing its New Zealand retail banking operations. [Extracted from the article]

"Nobody likes to hear this diagnosis", the Barclays chief executive officer said at the FT Global Banking Summit in a segment recorded Monday, the same day the bank revealed his diagnosis. (Bloomberg) -- C.S. Venkatakrishnan said he will continue to be engaged with running Barclays Plc during his treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- C.S. Venkatakrishnan said he will continue to be engaged with running Barclays Plc during his treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Barclays CEO to Stay "Engaged" With Bank After Cancer Diagnosis "Nobody likes to hear this diagnosis", the Barclays Plc chief executive officer said at the FT Global Banking Summit in a segment recorded Monday, the same day the bank revealed his diagnosis. [Extracted from the article]

Barclays CEO Says He Has "Curable" Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (Bloomberg) -- C.S. Venkatakrishnan, the chief executive officer of Barclays Plc, has a form of lymphoma and will undergo treatment for several months. Read More: Barclays CEO Says You Won't See Him Spin Out Investment Bank Venkatakrishnan's treatment will take place at New York's Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, according to the filing. [Extracted from the article]

C.S. Venkatakrishnan said in a letter to colleagues that "doctors have advised that my prognosis is excellent, and my condition is curable with their prescribed regimen", according to the filing. (Bloomberg) -- Barclays Plc's chief executive officer will undergo treatment for non-hodgkin lymphoma, the lender said in a regulatory filing Monday. [Extracted from the article]