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th February 2021 7:46 am
Good morning and welcome to your Morning Briefing for Friday 19 February, 2021. To get this in your inbox every morning click here.
MPs demand answers on Woodford probe
Treasury select committee chairman Mel Stride has said the FCA should set out a timeline to complete its Woodford investigation.
The watchdog has confirmed it started the investigation into the Woodford Equity Investment fund the same month it was gated in June 2019.
The FCA is also reviewing the actions of Link Fund Solutions, which acted as the authorised corporate director for Woodford Investment Management’s funds.
In a letter from yesterday, Stride wrote: “The FCA should set out when we can expect its investigation to conclude.”
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Tops 30,000 for First Time Since 1990
Bloomberg 2/15/2021 Gearoid Reidy and Min Jeong Lee
(Bloomberg) Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average topped 30,000 yen for the first time since August 1990, as it continued its charge back up through levels not seen since the collapse of the bubble economy.
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The gauge rose 1.9% to close at 30,084.15 on Monday, amid signs an economic recovery is intact at home and hopes of progress in U.S. stimulus talks. While equities globally have hit new heights in recent months, the Nikkei 225 still needs to gain almost 30% to surpass its record of 38,915.87. That was reached in the final trading session of 1989, before the index went on to lose more than half its value in three years after the economic bubble burst.
Sam Hallinan
He succeeds Chris Durack, who was promoted to co-CEO for Asia Pacific in March 2020.
Hallinan’s appointment takes effect in April, Schroders says in a statement on February 10. It didn’t specify the effective date.
He will report to Durack, who will continue to have oversight of the Australian business as part of his regional responsibilities and remain a director of Schroders Australia.
According to Schroders, Hallinan’s appointment “provides a dedicated, focused oversight of the Australian business as it invests in strengthening existing capabilities in Australian equities, multi-asset, fixed income and global equities”.
Hallinan’s “experience and proven leadership will add further depth to our management capability as we remain focused on delivering greater investment outcomes for our Australian clients”, Durack says in the statement.
UBS Group COO joins board of insurance giant, as bank names protection director
Zurich
The insurance giant has hired Sabine Keller-Busse to the group’s board.
Keller-Busse is a member of the group executive board of UBS Group and holds the roles of UBS Switzerland president and group chief operating officer.
Lloyds Banking Group
Rose St Louis ha been named as protection director at the group.
She will join the group on 15 March, succeeding Gary Burchett who is retiring later this year.
St Louis was previously a director in KPMG’s insurance practice and has over 20 years of experience in financial services.
Schroders appoints new Australia CEO 1 minute read 11 February 2021
Schroders Australia has appointed a new chief executive with more than 25 years’ financial services experience as it looks to boost its local capabilities.
Sam Hallinan will join Schroders as its new Australia CEO, reporting to Chris Durack, APAC co-CEO. Mr Hallinan will provide a “dedicated, focused oversight of the Australian business” as it strengthens its capabilities across a number of asset classes and builds out its local private debt team.
“We are thrilled to welcome Sam to our team and his appointment highlights our focus and commitment to the ongoing investment in the Australian business. Sam’s experience and proven leadership will add further depth to our management capability as we remain focused on delivering great investment outcomes for our Australian clients,” Mr Durack said.