Daily News |

The Competition Commission (Competition Commission) Switzerland announced Friday the opening of an investigation of several international banks suspected of having entered into agreements to influence interbank reference rate and marketing of certain products.

The Competition Commission said in a statement that an institution is denounced by stating that several banks have influenced the benchmark Libor (London Interbank Offered Rate) and Tibor (Tokyo Interbank Offered Rate ) for certain currencies.

Libor is used worldwide as a benchmark to set rates on transactions whose total amount is estimated at 350,000 billion. 

The slightest change in these rates calculated daily based on data from a selected group of banks may have a significant impact on rates charged by banks.

"For these behaviors, traders could obtain a distortion of the reference rate in their favor," said the policeman of the competition in a statement.

The Competition Commission is also suspected that brokers will be concerted on the differences between the buying and selling (spreads) of derivatives products, allowing them to sell financial products to ; disadvantageous terms for their clients. 

Investigations of the Competition Commission with respect to 12 major European institutions, U.S. and Japanese: UBS and Credit Suisse, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, JP Morgan Chase, Mizuho Financial Group, Rabobank, Royal Bank of Scotland, Societe Generale and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation.

INVESTIGATIONS IN EUROPE AND THE United States

U.S. authorities, European and British also seeking banks have underestimated the interbank rates to reduce borrowing costs and try to ease market tensions during the financial crisis.

At the time, Libor rates had increased, but some had found that this increase was insufficient to reflect the actual prices in the interbank market. 

"We are in contact with the U.S. Department of Justice and the European Commission," said Reuters on Friday Olivier Schaller, Deputy Director of the Competition Commission. "Our focus for now on the problems appeared on the Swiss market. We're just beginning our investigation. "

" We take these surveys very seriously and cooperate fully with the authorities, "said a spokesman for UBS and Credit Suisse

. RBS have refused ; s to comment while no one was immediately available in other institutions for a position

……. .. Suspicions had already emerged in 2011 when a European asset manager sued a dozen international banks, accusing them of understanding to manipulate Libor …… Charles Schwab Corp.

… has also instituted proceedings against eleven major banks for the same reasons. 

In July, UBS announced it had granted immunity in a case of suspected manipulations to Libor in exchange for his cooperation with certain authorities.

Getting this payday loans no faxing should take no more than 2 hours. Some lenders do have a loan transfer cut-off time so your loan advance may arrive in your bank account the next working day, but this is specified on the lender's website.

Carrefour Friday categorically denied press reports suggesting the replacement of its CEO Lars Olofsson, but according to a source familiar with the matter, George Plassat, Vivarte boss, has been recently approached and declined the proposal.

Georges Plassat, CEO of owner signs Andre Minelli or Kookai, was approached by the shareholders of Carrefour and declined the offer this month, said the source told Reuters.

"It has been proposed and he said 'no'.It was during November, "said the source.

"There is still no candidate to succeed Lars Olofsson."

Le Figaro wrote in its Friday edition that George Plassat was approached to lead Carrefour.

"It is courted for months by the main shareholders of Carrefour," the newspaper said.

"He refused the post of CEO before the summer because it was hard to find a successor to lead Vivarte (…) More and more interested in a challenge to his position, George Plassat has not closed yet the door to negotiations. On the contrary, "continued the newspaper.

The major shareholders of Carrefour are the fund Colony Capital and Groupe Arnault, the family holding company LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault.

While specialists are more likely to charge rates higher than the social security system, the government proposed a reform that displeased both patients and physicians mutual. At Compiegne, for example, 8 ophtalmos charge consultation between 45 and 50 euros.

In the Oise, it is better not to be myopic, but to have a good mutual. Of the forty liberal ophthalmologists present in the department, only five do not require any extra billing their patients. Thus, at Compiegne or Beauvais, all of these specialists is "Sector 2": they have the right to request additional compensation. And they are doing so! At Compiegne, for example, eight ophtalmos charge consultation between 45 and 50 euros.Not to mention the 4 million French people who do not have each other.

Check out our list here

cities where it is not possible to be cared for and costs Safely

Of course, all specialties are not affected. Outside of Paris, the vast majority of general practitioners, nephrologists, radiologists, cardiologists, pulmonologists and pediatricians are still an area that is to say they respect the social security rates. But in other specialties, the situation is getting worse. According to the latest figures released by Medicare, 56% of dermatologists who have opened an office in 2010 settled in Sector 2, 54% of gastroenterologists, 63% of ophtalmos, 82% of gynecologists, 84% of ENT, or 87% of surgeons.

Exchanges in the euro area have closed down Tuesday, still hurt by the crisis of sovereign debt and the risk to the region from falling into recession.

Sign of the serious concerns surrounding the monetary union, the euro is less resistant to storm the previous day. He fell under $ 1.35 and was trading around 1.3497 dollars in late afternoon.

In the wake of the countries now in the crosshairs of the markets, Italy and Spain, whose 10-year rates and spreads (spreads) performance with Germany were strained, France saw its 10-year spread with the Germany to a new high since the launch of the euro in 1999 to 190 basis points (the nominal rate of 10-year OAT standing at 3.68% against 1.77% for the German Bund).The historical record of the spread (250 bps) above the euro and goes back to January 1990.

The Paris Stock Exchange ended down 1.92% to 3049.13 points, those in Frankfurt and Milan, down 0.87% and 1.08% respectively. The index of the principal values ​​of the euro area, the Eurostoxx 50, lost 1.32%.

Outside the euro area, London has resisted (-0.03%).

Financials (banks and insurance) (-1.4%) (-1.85%) and construction (-2.12%) recorded the largest falls in Europe and sector weighed on the stock exchanges, including in Paris.

He assured that the draft prepared by the Tax Commission in Brussels would be considered by the Heads of State and Government of the EU "at the beginning of this year," and promised that France "will fight" in order to so that it is put into service by the end of next year.

The Head of State expressed satisfaction that now "a number of countries have joined the battle of France", quoting indiscriminately the European Commission, Germany, Spain, Argentina, African Union, Ethiopia, South Africa and Secretary General of the UN, which he said Brazil "who said his interest in the process."

Interest rates Italian debt to 10 years have passed the psychological threshold of 6% to 6.06%. Concerns focus on capacity from Rome to take charge of its massive debt of 1,900 billion euros. Asian stock markets closed sharply down Monday, August 8, 2011. The Tokyo Stock Exchange lost 2.9%, Shanghai 3.79%, Sydney 2.9%, 3.82% Seoul, Hong Kong 2.11%. The Bombay Stock Exchange, she fell to its lowest since 2010 (-3%).

The cost of financing the huge debt of Italy also rose Friday on the issue of 7.935 billion euros of bonds and long term, despite the Europe Agreement in an attempt to stem the debt crisis , announced the Bank of Italy.

Put into a corner by its European partners, the Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has also pledged to adopt by November 15 a plan of action to boost growth and reduce debt. But investors, who doubt the credibility of a government weakened and divided, are still not reassured by Italy with a huge debt reached about 1,900 billion euros (about 120% of GDP).

The option of separate market activities and those of major European banks of deposit will be thinking in Europe, announced Thursday the EU Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier, without going so far as to directly question the universal banking model.

This model, championed by French banks BNP Paribas, Societe Generale and Credit Agricole and its major European competitors, is already under pressure in the United States and several European countries, like Great Britain.

"The logic is to identify risks and to face risks at the right level, adequate safeguards," said Michel Barnier at a press conference.

"Is it necessary to go further and move from the segregation of risk and prudential measures to separation, as I see in the report suggest Vickers in the UK or as the Americans wanted to do?"

"I'm not closed to the idea of ​​separation (…) Before going further, I want us to objectively verify all the advantages of separation and the negative effects this could have," he said.

He then observed that the universal banking model, which predominates in Europe, played no role in triggering the financial crisis in 2008 and, in the same way, no model of the Atlantic had not preserved the United States in this crisis.

European officials working on these topics were then clarified that the Commission would not go head on universal banking model but would seek to ensure that the risks inherent in the business market are treated "totally sealed "to protect the activities of deposit.

THE CENTER OF THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN

In France, the idea of ​​separation of deposit banks and investment banks – or at least a separation of these types of activities – already among the themes of the presidential campaign.

It is defended not only by the Socialist Party, favorite in the polls, and the left parties but also, on the other side of the political spectrum, the National Front.

The project of the PS in 2012 and states that "we must return to a strict distinction and separation of banking activities of deposit and financial activities," an orientation also defended by the candidate Francois Hollande.

Two of his relatives, former Economy Minister Michel Sapin and the chairman of the Finance Committee of the National Assembly, Jérôme Cahuzac, recently told Reuters support the separation of deposit banks and investment..

French banks, supported by the Bank of France, for their part do not want to hear about this separation.

François Villeroy de Galhau, the network manager at BNP Paribas France had declared the end of September that such a separation would have been of no help when the financial crisis of 2008.

He wanted to show that Northern Rock in Britain was a purely retail bank while Lehman Brothers in the United States was only one bank and investment.

The French Banking Federation was not immediately available to comment on what Michel Barnier.

The Dexia share has been extremely turbulent Monday afternoon at the resumption of trading on the Stock Exchange after the announcement of the terms of the dismantling of the banking group, which includes a nationalization of the Belgian branch.

At 3:35 p.m., title, suspended since last Thursday, was spent in the green and gained 8.52% to 0.900 euro, in a volume of about 22 million pieces, after resuming its listing to 2:38 p.m. on a loss of 29% and have dropped to more than 36%.

Before the suspension, the share price to 0.845 Euro.

With speculation about his difficulties, Dexia saw its stock drop about 45% since September 28 – session that followed a board in which had been considered the possibilities of strengthening the Group's balance sheet.

This represents a $ 1.3 billion market capitalization that has vanished in a dozen days.

Monday morning, after a board of about noon, the bank approved the nationalization of the Belgian operations, and the principle of a sale of the Luxembourg subsidiary and backing activities financing of local authorities in French Caisse des Depots (CDC).

The New York Stock Exchange finished up 1.68% Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial 30 183.38 points to 11,123.33 winner. The S & P-500, wider, took 20.94 points, or 1.83%, to 1164.97.

The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 46.31 points for his side (1.83%) to 2506.82.

The possibility of a default on its debt Greece has gained momentum Friday, and even the G20 commitment to take steps to prevent the crisis in the euro area would undermine the banks and the economy n ' has failed to soothe the global financial markets.

Athens has denied reports in the Greek press saying that the one scenario out of the crisis was a default ordered at a discount of 50% for holders of sovereign debt.

The Greek Ministry of Finance has responded to these items by ensuring that the country was determined to implement the second international aid plan, 109 billion, set July 21."All other discussions, rumors, reviews, scenarios divert our attention from this central objective," said Minister Evangelos Venizelos said in a statement.

For its part, Klaas Knot, Member of the Board of Governors of the European Central Bank (ECB), said the scenario of a Greek default could not be ruled out, becoming the first central banker in the euro area to accept the prospect of such an outcome, long ruled by European leaders.

"This is one of the scenarios," he told the Dutch newspaper Het Financieele Dagblad."All efforts are aimed at preventing this, but I am now less certain that it failed to exclude a few months ago," he said, wondering "if the Greeks realize the gravity of the situation" .

THE GREEK BANK TO PENALTY

Risk aversion increased further after Deutsche Bank said the discounts that private investors have agreed to take on Greek sovereign debt in the second bailout of Athens could be greater than 21 % retained in the definition of the program.

European shares erased their losses in late afternoon but still in a very nervous market, investors are increasingly skeptical about the ability of governments to overcome the crisis of sovereign debt and economic stagnation.

The euro remained under pressure, while returning to the land above $ 1.35 after his eight-month low hit the previous day against the U.S. dollar.

In particular, investors appear disappointed by the fact that no specific action accompanies the commitment of finance ministers and central bankers from the G20 to take action to stem the crisis.

In a market still very volatile, banking stocks have turned upward in the afternoon, it seems after about Ewald Nowotny, a member of the Governing Council of the ECB, saying it would be may be desirable to reintroduce the tender to one year.

But Greek banks fell by 8% after lowering the credit rating agency Moody's notes of eight institutions in the country.

The recapitalization center stage

In this context, the question of recapitalizing European banks most vulnerable appears increasingly urgent in the eyes of investors.

Greek banks do not need to be nationalized, but should receive direct support of rescue funds in the euro area, called the head of a delegation of the European Union responsible for helping Athens to develop its reform program.

According to the President of the French financial markets authority (AMF), 15 to 20 European banks need recapitalization.Jean-Pierre Jouyet has also called for "find private investors who come to increase the capital of these banks."

But the European Commission has ensured that there was no plan to recapitalize banks under the European level, judging schools on the continent much more solid than three years ago.

Some 420 billion euros of capital was invested in European banks since the financial crisis of 2008 and the recapitalization is continuing, said at a press conference Olivier Bailly, spokesman for the EU executive.