The Swiss bank UBS came first profit since Oswald Gryubel assumed leadership of the company a year ago. Net profit for the financial institution for the fourth quarter of 2009 amounted to 1.205 billion Swiss francs (1.1 billion), Reuters reported. This is a significant improvement compared to the same period in 2008 when the bank had a loss of 9.58 billion francs. The improvement is partly due to a tax credit of 480 million Swiss francs, and the reduction of bonuses. However, under pressure from the continuing effects of the global financial crisis led to tax evasion cases in the United States and pressure from other countries for violation of banking secrecy to disclosure of tax crimes, UBS continues to lose the trust of its customers. “We are sure that the measures we took for withdrawal of capital from the bank’s clients are effective, but in the immediate future we expect to continue to draw,” says Oswald Gryubel CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors Vilidzhar Kasper in a letter to investors.
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The Mayor of London Boris Johnson warned the bankers to stay in the City of London, warning that the temptation to move to Switzerland to them face unexpected risks, officials said. “I am told that there are some parts of the canton of Bern, where men are not allowed to urinate made after 10 o’clock at night so as not to disturb their neighbors,” Johnson told a reception organized by the Japanese investment bank Nomura in the ski resort of Davos, which is currently being held traditional World Economic Forum. His comments in the room full of bankers, were made on the news that some hedge funds and investment bankers leave London and move to Switzerland to avoid the EU regulations or imposed in the UK tax revenue over a specified amount and on bonuses. “Time is the master of the universe to show that they can be both servants of society,” said Johnson, a former journalist and a frequent guest on satirical TV shows.
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The Bankers in the City will hardly be affected by the tax bonus, introduced by the British government last month, according to a Financial Times survey among leading investment banks. The majority of banks surveyed in the anonymous survey said they will bear all expenses for single tax rate of 50% or more of them by increasing funds for bonuses, even at risk to irritate the government and its own shareholders. The results coincide with information gathered by companies for recruitment. “90% of the tax will be borne by the banks,” says consultant by one company with customers in the City. In many cases this will mean that banks will double the funds allocated for bonuses, and tax costs will be borne by shareholders. Likely to be affected dividends that will already be under pressure because of the requirements of regulators to keep the profits banks to strengthen capital, the bankers admitted. Some investors have become increasingly dissatisfied with the plans of banks. According to the survey more likely to take a full tax at state institutions. However, some, as U.S. and Europe say they will try to share the cost of taxes and bonuses between the bank employees. In cases in which costs are shared by bankers that will apply globally, not only for employees in London. This strategy will not like the British finance ministry. When British finance minister Alistair Darling said the tax he expected that banks refuse to distribute large bonuses, such as forecasting that it will attract additional revenue of only 550 million pounds.
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The International credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s announced that it confirms the long-term rating of A European banking group UniCredit Group. Short-term rates e A-1, a stable outlook, the bank said. The decision of Standard and Poor’s follows the disclosure of UniCredit’s intention to further strengthen its capital position by increasing its capital by 4 billion. The Board of Directors of the Bank adopted a proposal for a capital increase by issuing new ordinary shares. Thus, the group’s capital base will grow by an additional 80 basis points. At the end of June 2009 the index Core Tier 1 is 6.85%. With the capital increase UniCredit aims to continue its support for countries in which it works and to develop lending to small and medium-sized businesses, individual customers and households, says the message.
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