UBS Shares Rise On Merger Rumour

The jury is out, however, about whether the rumour has any foundation. Reuters quotes an unnamed analyst, who described the speculation as 'scurrilous', suggesting that 'I doubt the Swiss would settle for that'. The Independent, on the other hand, quotes Evolution analyst Nick Brown, who said: 'HSBC should unquestionably be one of the best investment banking businesses, and they may be looking to UBS to do just that.....It's an interesting proposition'.

The New York Posts also reports Wednesday that UBS has hired Lazard to undertake a strategic review of its business, prompting speculation that the bank may be considering separating its wealth management business from its troubled investment banking division.

Another rumour doing the rounds on trading floors Tuesday was that Barclays was thinking of having a run at French bank Societe Generale. This rumour was quickly dismissed as nonsense by the market.

Talking of Barclays, the bank came out Wednesday and confirmed that it is to sell $8.9bn in shares to existing shareholders and a group of investors, including China Development Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Qatar Investment Authority, and Temasek Holdings.

Finally, The New York Times reports that Lehman Brothers has announced more senior management changes. Michael Gelbrand, who was ousted last year as global head of fixed income, returns to run the firm's capital market's businesses. And Alex Kirk, who left his job as head of credit products 4 months back, is back as head of investments. Does anyone know what's going on over there ?

Please use the 'E-Mail' button immediately under the article title to send this item to a friend.