Citi leads US banks higher in systemic risk
LONDON • Global banking regulators said some American lenders present a bigger risk to the financial system than last year and should face stiffer capital requirements to ward off threats.
Citigroup, Bank of America and Wells Fargo all face higher capital surcharges after they rose in the Financial Stability Board's (FSB's) latest ranking of the most systemically important banks in the world.
Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley and British lenders HSBC Holdings and Barclays saw their buffer levels fall, the FSB said in a statement yesterday. The new capital buffers apply, starting in 2018.
HSBC's capital surcharge falls to 2 per cent of risk-weighted assets from 2.5 per cent, while Citigroup's buffers rise to 2.5 per cent from 2 per cent, the FSB said.
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Rio Tinto to cut iron ore jobs in Australia
SYDNEY • Miner Rio Tinto is preparing to cut hundreds of jobs at its Australian iron ore business, following a restructuring of the global giant's most profitable sector, the company said yesterday.
A Rio Tinto spokesman declined to say how many jobs would go, although local media reported up to 500 management and support positions were on the line.
"There will be cuts," a Rio spokesman said, adding that the move was part of a wider review to streamline the company as it braces itself for continued volatility in minerals commodities markets.
The company currently employs about 11,000 workers after shedding about 700 people early this year and about 800 early last year.
REUTERS
Credit Suisse's Swiss unit kicks off
GENEVA • Credit Suisse Group's Swiss unit began life as a legally independent company, enabling the bank to pursue plans to sell part of the business in a public offering next year.
In carving out a separate entity, Credit Suisse also fulfils a regulatory requirement to make banks easier to break up in a crisis, the bank said yesterday.
Credit Suisse (Schweiz) has its own licence, allowing it to function if its parent has to file for bankruptcy.
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