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Government invites views on tax policies
July 27, 2010--Today the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, David Gauke MP has published nine documents for discussion and consultation relating to tax, following commitments made at the June Budget.
This will provide businesses, tax professionals and other interested parties with a more comprehensive view and the opportunity to comment on the Government's proposed tax reforms.
The Government set out its new and innovative approach to tax policy making at the Budget, designed to create a more predictable, stable and simple tax system in the UK
The documents published today are:
PAYE reform
Furnished Holiday Lettings
Pensions tax relief
Associated company rules
Disclosure of Inheritance Tax avoidance
Foreign branch taxation
Controlled Foreign Company interim improvements
Modernisation of Investment Trust Company rules
National Minimum Wage regulations
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Source: HM Treasury
Funds shun UK index-linked bond
July 27, 2010--The world’s two biggest bond fund managers shunned the sale of UK inflation-linked bonds amid worries about the shake-up of pension rules.
BlackRock, the world’s largest fund manager, said publicly it was not a buyer of the bonds partly because of fresh rules that will change the inflation measure that dictates future increases in private pension payments in the UK
The fund manager added it already had enough of the securities on its books.
Pimco, its main rival, also decided against buying the bonds, according to people familiar with the situation. It sat on the sidelines because the yield premium was not high enough, as well as confusion about the new rules
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Source: FT.com
Europe clears world's biggest airline merger
July 27, 2010--Europe on Tuesday cleared a merger between US carriers United and Continental that will create the world's biggest airline, with the companies now racing to secure US approval.
The green light from Brussels competition enforcers has still to be matched by US anti-trust authorities, who turned down a United-US Airways deal in 2001, with backing also required from shareholders of the two companies.
Five weeks after being formally notified, the European Commission "concluded that the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition" in Europe, where the US airlines service a combined 35 destinations.
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Source: EUbusiness
Boerse Stuttgart launches Smartphone application
June 26, 2010--The Stuttgart Stock Exchange is now offering yet another service for private investors. With Boerse Stuttgart Mobil investors can access the same detailed information on their smartphones as they do on the website.
The new application allows investors to access their watch lists and portfolios in real time with their mobile terminals.
They can also access real-time prices for all securities traded at the Stuttgart Stock Exchange and view the most important domestic and international indices.
To obtain current market information and background reports, users can also use the application to watch all videos from Boerse Stuttgart TV. Furthermore, the programme allows investors to monitor their limits in real time for all securities traded on the Stuttgart Stock Exchange. Investors can therefore keep an eye on their portfolios at all times.
The free Boerse Stuttgart app is available for downloading in Apple's App Store. The application is also available for the smartphones of many other reputable manufacturers and can be downloaded from the Boerse Stuttgart website at www.boerse-stuttgart.de/mobile. "With the application for smartphones Boerse Stuttgart offers a modern service that is extremely interesting for private investors," says Christoph Lammersdorf, CEO of Boerse Stuttgart Holding GmbH.
Source: Boerse Stuttgart
Information on the Central Repository for Credit Rating Agencies applying for registration in the European Union
July 26, 2010--The EU Regulation on Credit Rating Agencies (EC 1060/2009) requires credit rating agencies (CRAs) to provide information on their historical performance data and CESR to make this information accessible to the public by establishing a central repository (named CEREP).
In order to help CRAs to comply with Article 11 of the Regulation on reporting requirements, CESR conducted a meeting on 8th July 2010 setting out the timeline for the implementation of the CEREP and the details of the connectivity tests between credit rating agencies and CESR (which take place in July and August 2010).
CRAs applying for registration in EU should contact the following address (cerep@cesr.eu) in order to get their information package on the connectivity testing (“HUB Testing Package”) and the “CRA Reporting Instructions.
Source: CESR
SGX, STOXX and Eurex to bring EURO STOXX 50 Futures to Asia
July 26, 2010--Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Eurex, Europe’s largest derivatives exchange, announced today that they are partnering to launch the SGX EURO STOXX 50 Index futures and options on futures for the first time in Asia. The partnership is based on a license agreement between the global index provider STOXX Limited and SGX.
SGX will list U.S.-dollar denominated EURO STOXX 50 Index futures and options on futures in the second half of 2010, subject to Monetary Authority of Singapore approval. SGX and Eurex will jointly market and promote the U.S.-dollar based contracts as part of the collaboration efforts between the two exchanges.
Mr. Chew Sutat, Head of Corporate & Market Strategy at SGX, said, “The SGX EURO STOXX 50 futures and options on futures contracts will complement our suite of Asian products, providing global customers with one-stop access to Asian and European equity markets as well as trading opportunities between SGX and Eurex. Customers also will have first-mover advantage to react to weekend or overnight European and U.S. market news and manage their European exposures during Asian hours.”
Mr. Michael Peters, member of the Eurex Executive Board, said, “Through our cooperation, we extend the user base of Europe’s most liquid index derivatives contract. This will result in new trading and hedging opportunities globally and should further increase the liquidity of this benchmark product. Our partnership will also strengthen our position in Asia as a global exchange.”
Mr. Hartmut Graf, chief executive officer, STOXX, added, “We are pleased to partner with Singapore Exchange as it is a highly recognized institution in Asia. Through this cooperation, STOXX ensures increased attractiveness of the EURO STOXX 50 Index for investors in Asia, and takes another step to expand its European success story globally.”
The EURO STOXX 50 Index derivatives traded at Eurex are euro-denominated. The futures recorded an average daily volume (ADV) in the first half of 2010 of more than 1.6 million contracts while the options had an ADV of another 1.2 million contracts.
Source: Eurex
Financial Secretary to the Treasury launches consultation on the implementation of financial regulation reforms announced at Mansion House
July 26, 2010--Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mark Hoban MP, today launched the Government’s consultation on the implementation of reforms to financial regulation.
The document sets out detailed proposals for reform of the financial services sector, first announced by the Chancellor in his Mansion House speech on 16th June 2010.
The Chancellor set out plans to overhaul the system of Financial Regulation giving the Bank of England powers over macro prudential regulation through a newly established Financial Policy Committee (FPC), which will be established on an interim basis from Autumn 2010.
The consultation invites views on this proposal in addition to plans to create:
A new prudential regulator under the control of the Bank of England headed by a new Deputy Governor (the first of whom will be current Financial Services Authority Chief Executive, Hector Sants), which will be responsible for supervising the safety and soundness of individual financial firms. A new Consumer Protection and Markets Authority (CPMA) to act as a single integrated regulator focussed on conduct in financial markets Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mark Hoban said
"The Coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to reform the financial system, to avoid repeating the mistakes of the recent financial crisis and to ensure that taxpayers are protected. Today is a crucial milestone in our programme of reform. To take this forward, we would welcome the input of everyone who has an interest, including regulators and the regulated community, to ensure that we get the design right.”
View the Government’s consultation on the implementation of reforms to financial regulation
The Group of Governors and Heads of Supervision reach broad agreement on Basel Committee capital and liquidity reform package
July 26, 2010--The Group of Governors and Heads of Supervision, the oversight body of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, met on 26 July 2010 to review the Basel Committee's capital and liquidity reform package. Governors and Heads of Supervision are deeply committed to increase the quality, quantity, and international consistency of capital, to strengthen liquidity standards, to discourage excessive leverage and risk taking, and reduce procyclicality.
Governors and Heads of Supervision reached broad agreement on the overall design of the capital and liquidity reform package. In particular, this includes the definition of capital, the treatment of counterparty credit risk, the leverage ratio, and the global liquidity standard. The Committee will finalise the regulatory buffers before the end of this year. The Governors and Heads of Supervision agreed to finalise the calibration and phase-in arrangements at their meeting in September.
Mr Jean-Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank and Chairman of the Group of Governors and Heads of Supervision, said that "the agreements reached today are a landmark achievement to strengthen banking sector resilience in a manner that reflects the key lessons of the crisis." He emphasised that "the Group of Governors and Heads of Supervision have ensured that the reforms are rigorous and promote the long term stability of the banking system. We will put in place transition arrangements that ensure the banking sector is able to support the economic recovery."
Mr Nout Wellink, Chairman of the Basel Committee and President of the Netherlands Bank added that "a strong banking sector is a necessary condition for sustainable economic growth." He added that the announcements today should provide additional transparency about the design of the Basel Committee reforms, thus reducing market uncertainty and further supporting the economic recovery. Mr Wellink underscored that "many banks have already made substantial strides in strengthening their capital and liquidity base. The phase-in arrangements will enable the banking sector to meet the new standards through reasonable earnings retention and capital raising."
German banks did not reveal full debt details: report
July 26, 2010--European banking regulators say six German banks did not reveal full details of sovereign debt holdings as part of a key test of the sector's health, the Financial Times reported on Monday.
"We agreed with all supervisory authorities and with the banks in the exercise that there would be a bank-by-bank disclosure of sovereign risks," the FT quoted Arnoud Vossen, secretary general of the Committee of European Banking Supervisors (CEBS), as saying.
The six German banks included the country's biggest, Deutsche Bank, as well as Deutsche Postbank, which has the nation's largest retail network, and Hypo Real Estate, which failed the so-called "stress tests," the newspaper said.
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Source: EUbusiness
UK considers single powerful corporate governance watchdog
July 26, 2010-The UK government is considering creating a single “powerful” new corporate governance regulator which would supervise corporate governance, company disclosure and institutional shareholders’ stewardship of companies.
The idea is to merge the UK Listing Authority (UKLA), the arm of the Financial Services Authority which deals with stock exchange listings, with the Financial Reporting Council, the body which oversees the Corporate Governance Code and the Stewardship Code.
“This would have the benefit of bringing the UKLA’s regulation of primary market activity alongside FRC functions relating to company reporting, audit and corporate governance,” the government’s new consultation document states.
The reorganisation is part of a sweeping revamp in the wake of the financial crisis.
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Source: Responsible Investor
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