InvestmentsApr 11 2014

Morning papers: Co-op Bank to refuse £5m in exec bonuses

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The Co-operative Bank will cancel approximately £5m in bonuses to former executives as it announced a staggering loss of £1.3bn and warned it will not be profitable until next year at the earliest, the Financial Times reports.

The paper says the move is an effort by the embattled bank to mitigate the crisis engulfing both the bank and its parent the Co-operative Group.

However, the paper adds that chief executive Niall Booker is set to recieve £4.6m for his first 18 months at the bank.

Salary of £40k needed for first mortgage

The Council of Mortgage Lenders has revealed that first-time buyers need to be earning almost £40,000 per year to afford a mortgage, the Telegraph reports.

According to the paper, the average FTB took out a loan of £119,000 in February 2014, an amount that is unaffordable for those on the average salary of £26,500.

The CML reported that borrowing in the month for FTBs grew to £3.1bn, up 55 per cent on February 2013.

However, the total amount of home move loans, remortgages and buy-to-let mortgages arranged in February was down compared to January sales.

Asset managers consider new trading venue

Some of the largest asset management firms in the world are considering the creation of a joint equity trading venue, which the Financial Times says would be an attempt to stall the “technological arms race” sparked by high-frequency trading firms.

According to the paper, Fidelity has mooted the idea to several other companies including Blackrock of routing share trades through a central venue that would rival traditional stock exchanges.

Although Fidelity executives have also received expressions of interest from other buyside firms, the FT reports that discussions remain at a preliminary stage.

Overdrafts not good value for money, FCA finds

The Financial Conduct Authority has warned that consumers are not getting good value for money from the UK’s £8bn overdraft market, the Guardian reports.

Research by the City watchdog found that fees were confusing to customers, who often considered overdrafts an extension of their income rather than a form of borrowing in part because they are presented as available funds.

According to the paper, consumers owed a total of £8bn in overdrafts as of July 2013, of which the FCA estimated 90 per cent were pre-arranged.

The FCA warned that banks and building socieities making income from client confusion regarding overdrafts could face new rules on charges.