UK big 4 banks agree to redress on rate protection

Britain's four largest banks face more than £9bn of losses as a result of pending legal actions, according to analysts at Credit Suisse.

Having found serious failings in the sale of interest rate hedging products to Britain’s small and medium-sized businesses, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has announced that it has reached agreement with Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and RBS to provide appropriate redress where mis-selling has occurred. According to the regulator, the sale of these products had a [...]

More than 90pc of the complex interest rate derivatives sold by banks to small businesses could have been mis-sold, according to the findings of a review by the Financial Services Authority, reports The Telegraph. The FSA said that its analysis of 173 sales of interest rate hedging products to SMEs by Britain’s four largest banks found that 90pc “did not comply with one or more of our regulatory requirements”.

Thirty-five outstanding small- or medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) took center stage at the President’s “E” Awards ceremony at the White House today. This morning, Commerce Secretary John Bryson and Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Michelle O’Neill joined Senior Adviser to the President Valerie Jarrett to honor U.S. companies and organizations that have made significant contributions to increasing American exports. A total of 41 companies and organizations—the largest group to receive the award in the past twenty years—were honored at the ceremony, which marks the 50th annual “E” Awards.Winners of the 2012 “E” award represent diverse communities across the country from places like Bakersfield, Calif., Baton Rouge, La., Bolingbrook, Ill., and Bradford, Pa. Of the honorees recognized at today’s ceremony, 35 are SMEs, 20 are manufacturers, and 17 are both.“E” Award recipients contribute to the President’s National Export Initiative (NEI) goal of doubling U.S. exports in order to support American jobs. A key component of the NEI is ensuring that America’s small businesses have the tools, resources and relationships they need to make exporting a growing part of their business operations and creating jobs in the United States.