STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Friday, 6 July 2012

[Demeter]

64. Made-in-London Scandals Risk City Reputation as Money Center WHAT BALONEY

Last edited Fri Jul 6, 2012, 12:51 PM - Edit history (1)

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-05/made-in-london-scandals-risk-city-s-reputation-as-finance-center.html

London risks losing its status as the world’s top financial center as the $360 trillion interest-rate fixing probe follows a series of market abuses by banks that eroded trust in a city already shrinking faster than rivals. Home to about 250 foreign banks, London is the world’s biggest center for foreign-exchange trading and cross-border bank lending and trades $1.4 trillion of interest derivatives daily. The Bank of England, which will take on additional responsibility for regulation as well as being the country’s central bank, was implicated in the Libor fixing scandal this week when Barclays published an e-mail written by Diamond in 2008.

“My heart sinks every time there is a scandal and the perpetrators are in London, even if it is not always the U.K.’s responsibility, it is under our noses,” Sharon Bowles, chairwoman of the European Parliament’s economic and monetary affairs committee, said in an interview. “There is an effect on the U.K.’s reputation, and it reinforces the view that even after all the apologies there is much to do.”

The effect is taking a toll on the capital of a country enduring its first double-dip recession since the 1970s, which fired more financial-services workers than any other country in 2011 and again this year. London, ranked as the world’s number one financial center by research firm Z/Yen Group Ltd., was where American International Group Inc. (AIG) and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. booked transactions that helped lead to their downfall. This week saw Bank of England and U.K. government officials tied to the interest-rate fixing scandal that cost Robert Diamond, London’s best-known banker, his job at Barclays. With the European debt crisis on its doorstep, London now faces calls to cull its bonus culture, rein in risk-taking and beef up a light- touch regulatory system that fueled a decade-long boom.

Biggest Export

The danger for London is that Europe is preparing to set up its own regulator for banks, which may exclude the U.K. or disadvantage firms based in the city....

THEY ARE AFRAID OF THE EUROZONE?

THE UPSHOT WILL BE A LEANER, AND MUCH MEANER, CITY OF LONDON--OR THE END OF THE CITY AS THE EURO PULLS ALL OF EUROPE INTO A GRAVE

A GENERAL SUMMARY OF EVENTS FOLLOWS AT LINK