Financial Times Summary

Mon 3 Nov 2008

UBS
UBS has raised more than £930m for a long-term infrastructure investment fund and plans another offering for next year in a move that underlines the sector's relative resilience to the financial crisis. The bank's global asset management division said that the committed capital it raised was more than its original target and involved a minimum investment period of 15 years.
Lehman Brothers
The success of mergers and acquisitions in investment banking, as much as anywhere, depends heavily on the integration of culture, and for Bob Diamond the acquisition of Lehman Brothers' US business is no exception. Just eight weeks after the president of Barclays Capital pulled off what could be hailed as a coup at the time, the culture clashes have started and much of the senior talent is leaving. This week, Deutsche Bank will announce it has hired eight more ex-Lehman employees to build on its financial institutions group.
Credit Agricole
CLSA, the Asia-focussed brokerage arm of Credit Agricole, is planning to set up a subsidiary to provide financing to regional companies starved of credit in the wake of the financial crisis. The unusual move, by a group regarded primarily as a broking and research house, underscores the fast-changing dynamics across the financial services industry.
Bank of England
The Bank of England is facing mounting calls to cut interest rates sharply in the face of a rapidly darkening economic storm. Both the Bank and the European Central Bank are expected to deliver a 50 basis points cut in UK and eurozone interest rates on Thursday, but pressure is growing on both central banks to go further. A cut more than 50bp would be a first, for both the Bank and ECB, but this weeks data releases will underline the case for decisive action in easing monetary policy.
LSE
The London Stock Exchange levied a charge on orders that do not come to it directly, in a move dubbed "anti-competitive" by Nasdaq OMX.

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