North America

S&P at record highs, while IPOs are 60% down year on year; disconnect between stock market and new issues.

China and India dominate market; US corporates begin to take note.

Vampire squid or bank of the people? Goldman Sachs wants to win over middle America.

UBS oncology fund raises $471 million; banks turn to foundations to collaborate.

Profit windfalls from GSEs evaporate; SoFi approved to become seller and servicer.

MetLife wins right to ditch Sifi label; US insurers consider options.

Trading the weakest link; firm ‘needs restructuring’.

Performance varies widely; Clients still boosting allocations.

The North American banking and treasury market is highly evolved but technology offers many routes to further sophistication.

US digital infrastructure far from ready; alternatives to mobile payments here to stay.

This column’s author had an inside view of the Chemical/Chase merger 20 years ago.

Loan production offices instead of branches; tech tie-ups lead to nationwide presence.

California’s new treasurer picked his target when he made an example of the foreign bank but the domestic players have been warned.

Barclays has suffered the biggest blow in the latest round of billion-dollar regulatory fines for rigging currency markets, with a penalty of almost $2.4 billion from five regulators, with the spotlight shifting to FX options.

So far in 2015 we have been witnessing death by a thousand policy rate cuts around the world. That is turning the US Federal Reserve’s dream of rate normalization into a dystopian nightmare.

Bank earnings boosted by trading, lower costs; NIMs sink at larger banks.

The Canadian dollar typically trades in the shadow of the all-powerful US currency, but last month that momentarily changed as global interest in the ‘loonie’ soared to intergalactic highs.

Facebook’s arrival on the digital payment scene will inevitably see it become a significant player. But, so far, Facebook is not offering a revolution in the global payment infrastructure and tie-ups with disruptive new technologies would truly transform the FX landscape.

The meteoric rise of the US dollar seems unstoppable but cynics are beginning to emerge, as economic data and relative valuations suggest the currency’s ascent is starting to look overheated.

Share buybacks artificially inflate executive pay and disguise its ultimate cost to businesses.

Bill Winters has some big decisions to mull while he prepares to start his new job as Standard Chartered chief executive.

Asset management is being squeezed by tougher stress testing and regulatory controls. Only the biggest players seem set to survive.

Energy market volatility hits equity tranches; index dispersion at highest level since crisis.

New trading system raises funds, prepares launch; 22 of top 50 asset managers signed up.

Private equity firms staff up; bank versus non-bank competition increases; talent ‘harder to come by’ than in 2008.

Basel wants end to use of credit ratings; further regulatory changes deplored.

US firms are heading towards record levels of euro issuance, bringing the credit markets closer together than ever.

Innovation is held back by the gap between the old financial system, investing and lending primarily against hard assets, and the new knowledge economy that depends on intangible assets. A new type of bank could benefit SMEs seeking to develop innovative products. It could also give investors the chance to redeploy speculative capital more productively. But who is the driving force behind Snowflake?

For corporate treasurers, currency volatility is heightening the importance of updating FX hedging policies, amid rising costs.

International banking alliances offer a number of benefits to treasurers – from FX hedging to cash pooling – while Sepa and the rise of non-bank payment providers have yet to diminish their allure.